LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Official Cars

Diana Johnson: To ask the Leader of the House how often he has used the Government Car Service in (a) March to September 2012 and (b) September 2012 to March 2013; how many journeys he has made using the Government Car Service in each period; what the (i) staffing and (ii) vehicle cost has been as a result of official car use in those periods; and how many official engagements he has undertaken outside Westminster in each such period.

Andrew Lansley: The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons is part of the Cabinet Office and, under its arrangements, I have the shared use of a departmental car.
	I also refer the hon. Lady to the answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), of 13 February 2013, Official Report, column 720-21W. The cost of Government cars is published annually and costs for 2012-13 will be published in due course. Details of individual trips are not recorded.
	In the period I have been in post I have undertaken 10 official engagements outside Westminster.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Monoxide: Alarms

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the proportion of domestic premises which have carbon monoxide alarms fitted.

Gregory Barker: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer I gave her on 23 February 2013, Official Report, column 236W.

Carbon Reduction Commitment Scheme

Aidan Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what reports he has received of whether Cannock Chase district council has made any payments under the carbon reduction commitment scheme in each of the last five years.

Gregory Barker: The CRC Energy Efficiency scheme required participants to register for the scheme in 2010 based on their 2008 energy usage (where that exceeded a qualification threshold of 6,000 MWh). Cannock Chase district council (CCDC) did not register for the CRC Energy Efficiency scheme.
	A list of those that have reported and paid for allowances for 2011-12 (the first year allowances were brought) is available on the Environment Agency website at:
	http://crc.environment-agency.gov.uk/pplt/web/plt/public/2011-12/CRCPerformanceLeagueTable20112012

Coal

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department plans to take to safeguard critical mass in the British coal industry.

John Hayes: Coal generation currently provides around a third of our electricity supplies, with British mines contributing around 40% of feedstock to our coal-fired power stations in 2012.
	Coal power stations, equipped with carbon capture and storage (CCS), can continue to play a significant role as part of a future low-carbon energy mix. The Government have put in place a comprehensive programme of measures to bring forward a cost competitive CCS industry, including a £1 billion commercialisation programme, £125 million for research and development and reform to the electricity market.
	The Government value the role of British coal in meeting our energy needs. We meet regularly with representatives of the coal industry and its customers, and discussions include the need for investor confidence in a continuing market for British coal to sustain the industry.
	The Department's current work with UK Coal Operations Ltd in the light of the recent underground fire at Daw Mill demonstrates our interest in the ongoing contribution coal can make to meeting current energy needs.

Energy Companies Obligation

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  how many households have had heating, draught proofing or cavity wall measures installed through the affordable warmth element of the Energy Company Obligation in (a) January and (b) February 2013;
	(2)  how many households have had heating, draught proofing or cavity wall measures installed through the Energy Company Obligation in (a) January 2013 and (b) February 2013;
	(3)  how many households in (a) total, (b) the private rented sector and (c) the owner-occupier sector had energy efficiency measures installed through the Energy Company Obligation in (i) January 2013 and (ii) February 2013;
	(4)  how many households in hard-to-treat housing had energy efficiency measures installed through the Energy Company Obligation in (a) January 2013 and (b) February 2013.

Gregory Barker: The Department will release the first official statistics on the number of measures installed through the Energy Company Obligation—the detail of breakdowns is to be decided—in June 2013.

Energy: Billing

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether he plans to require energy suppliers to publish the unit costs of individual renewable types of generation on energy bills.

John Hayes: The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), does not require energy suppliers to publish the unit costs of individual renewable types of generation on energy bills.

Wind Power

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what consideration he has given to requiring a decommissioning bond to be attached to all wind farm applications before any application is considered.

Gregory Barker: Onshore, wind farm developers make decommissioning arrangements with the relevant local planning authorities and other parties who have a particular interest, for example the landowner. Decommissioning conditions are applied to onshore wind farm planning permissions to ensure restoration of the site to the satisfaction of the local authority once the planning permission lifetime has expired. It is common practice for developers to enter into agreements pursuant to section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to ensure funds are available for such decommissioning work.
	Offshore, the statutory decommissioning scheme for renewable energy installations provides security that their removal can be undertaken by developers. Under sections 105 to 114 of the Energy Act 2004, the Secretary of State may require a person who is responsible for one of these installations to submit (and eventually carry out) a decommissioning programme for them, and to submit details of the security they propose to provide with their decommissioning programme.
	Both of these regimes provide for the use of bonds if appropriate in the circumstances. The Government consider that these arrangements are sufficient to ensure that suitable decommissioning provisions are in place and so do not feel that requiring a bond at the point of application is necessary.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Beef: Horsemeat

Mary Creagh: To ask the Attorney-General whether his Department has sought legal advice with regard to (a) police investigations into the horsemeat scandal and (b) the naming of companies implicated in the horsemeat scandal.

Oliver Heald: My office has not sought any legal advice in relation to this matter. The Environment, Food and Farming Unit of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is providing the police with advice on their current investigations. These investigations are ongoing and it would be inappropriate to offer further comment on this matter.

TRANSPORT

Birmingham City University

Khalid Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to limit the negative effects of the loss of Birmingham City University's City North campus to Birmingham Perry Barr constituency and businesses in that area.

David Willetts: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	Higher education institutions are independent and autonomous. It is for them to decide how they manage their assets and deliver learning to meet the needs of their students. The plan for the relocation of teaching facilities at Birmingham City University's North campus is a matter for the institution's governing body. The Government cannot intervene in these decisions.

Car Tax

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2013, Official Report, column 772W, on car tax, when the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency advice was revised; and if he will publish the revised advice.

Stephen Hammond: The advice that the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency provides to the parent or carer of a disabled person who has passed away was revised on 6 February 2013. Officials now advise that no enforcement action will be taken within a reasonable period. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is considering how to communicate this revised guidance more widely.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the average value of land per acre along the preferred route of phase two of High Speed 2.

Simon Burns: HS2 Ltd's published costs and risk model report sets out an estimate of the land costs along the preferred route of phase two of £870 million. This estimate will evolve over time as our proposals for phase two are developed following consultation later this year.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department's calculation is of the cost per mile of the building of phase two of High Speed 2.

Simon Burns: As detailed in the January 2013 Command Paper “High Speed Rail: Investing in Britain's Future—Phase Two: The route to Leeds, Manchester and beyond”, the Government's initial preferred route, station and depot options for phase two are now estimated at around £16.8 billion, without the spur to Heathrow. This includes allowances for risk and optimism bias.
	The length of the western leg of phase two is 95 miles, and the eastern leg, is 116 miles.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the processes being followed on High Speed 2 comply with section 85 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 on the protection of areas of outstanding natural beauty; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: As set out in the response to the 2011 consultation, ‘High Speed Rail: Investing in Britain's Future—Decisions and Next Steps’, the Government consider that HS2 is consistent with section 85 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions his Department has had with HS2 Ltd about the Chilterns Tunnel Alternative Report produced by Peter Bretts Associates; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: HS2 Ltd and the Department have regular discussions on the developing design for HS2 Phase One. Officials in my Department are aware of the contents of the report and the discussions that HS2 Ltd has had with the Chilterns Ridges Action Group.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on the High Speed 2 Judicial Review process to date; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: To date, the Department has spent £294,717 (exc. VAT) on the High Speed 2 Judicial Review, in addition to DFT staff salary costs.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what additional budget has been allocated to HS2 Ltd to support changes to the High Speed 2 Phase One design specification since January 2012; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what additional budget has been allocated to HS2 Ltd to support mitigation proposals for High Speed 2 Phase One since January 2012; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  whether the total cost of the High Speed 2 Phase One preferred line of route has increased in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The previous Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Putney (Justine Greening), published estimated costs for Phase One at the time of announcing her decision to proceed with HS2, in January 2012. These were early stage estimates, and HS2 Ltd is continuing to refine designs in more detail to take account of site survey and other locally-specific issues as well as developing thinking on how future services and systems will operate.
	Cost estimates are continuing to evolve as a consequence of this work, and the Department is working closely with HS2 Ltd to ensure that robust cost controls are in place throughout this process.
	Overall cost estimates will be updated to inform the Estimate of Expense deposited with the hybrid Bill later in 2013.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the High Speed 2 Phase One environmental impact assessment consultation complies with the Aarhus Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Department and HS2 Ltd have recognised and actively considered the requirements set out in the Aarhus Convention and how they apply to HS2 as part of their work programme for the environmental statement and the hybrid Bill.

Northern Rail

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had on additional rolling stock for the Northern Franchise.

Simon Burns: Department for Transport officials are currently considering options with local stakeholders for the provision of additional rolling stock on the Northern Franchise following completion of electrification. A final decision will be made based on the value for money and affordability of the options available.

Roads: East Sussex

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 6 February 2013, Official Report, column 247W, on roads: East Sussex, if he will (a) publish and (b) place in the Library a copy of the documents relating to funding for the Bexhill to Hastings link road and alternative transport measures without any redaction of content under the headings of (i) recommendations, (ii) timing and (iii) emerging options sent to Ministers in his Department on 14 March 2012 and 19 March 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Baker: The Information Commissioner's Office is currently considering an appeal against the redactions in the published versions of the documents dated 14 March and 19 March 2012 to which the hon. Member refers, and we await their findings.
	The Department took the decision to withhold the information as it falls under the exception in Regulation 12(4)(e) of the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, because it involves the disclosure of internal communications relating to the formulation or development of government policy and government decision making. In applying this exception the Department had to balance the public interest in withholding the information against the public interest in disclosure.
	The Department gave regard to the Regulations and to wider government policy and guidance—including the Ministry of Justice “working assumption” that information presented to Ministers as policy advice, recommendations, suggested options, and opinions should not be disclosed. The Department concluded that the factors above outweigh the benefits of disclosure and that it would not be in the public interest to release the information as it would seriously impact on the decision and policy making process in relation to the ongoing issue of funding this scheme and, more widely, other transport schemes.

Roads: Safety

Eric Ollerenshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how his Department is co-operating with the Department for Education to promote road safety in schools.

Stephen Hammond: The THINK! road safety campaign provides a range of resources to enable teachers to deliver road safety education to children and teenagers in schools. These include lesson plans, printed materials and interactive games.
	To improve on this, a school engagement strategy is under development and the THINK! team will be consulting with the Department for Education to ensure a co-ordinated, cost-effective and impactful strategy is delivered.
	In the first phase of the work the THINK! team has engaged with organisations such as the National Union of Teachers and the National Governors Association to understand factors that impact on road safety education in schools, including time, resources, IT facilities and current use of THINK! materials.
	All of this information will be used to help develop more effective road safety resources for use by key partners, such as teachers, school group leaders and road safety officers and ensure that effective road safety messages are delivered to young people.
	This stakeholder activity will launch in the early summer.

Shipping: Registration

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the number of vessels which might flag out if the Maritime Labour Convention is not ratified by the UK.

Stephen Hammond: The Department has not made an assessment because we are committed to taking forward all the legal provisions necessary to allow the UK to ratify the Maritime Labour Convention 2006. We expect to ratify the convention in August 2013.

Shipping: Registration

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues in the (a) Cabinet Office and (b) Department for Business, Innovation and Skills regarding the timetable for UK ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention; and when he next intends to hold such discussions.

Stephen Hammond: Ministers from all three Departments are engaged with the processes that are associated with the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006, and will continue to be so.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Digital Technology: Epilepsy

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what research her Department has commissioned on the relationship between screen-based activity and the triggering of epileptic fits; what advice and guidance is put out by the Department on this issue; what regulatory controls are under consideration to protect public health in this respect; and if she will make a statement.

Hugh Robertson: I can confirm that DCMS has not commissioned any research into the relationship between screen-based activity and the triggering of epileptic fits.
	However, we believe there is well established regulation and guidance in place with regards to this issue. Section 1 of the ITC Programme Code (which now represents Ofcom's policy) sets out guidance on the use of flashing images and regular patterns in relation to ‘Family Viewing Policy, Offence to Good Taste and Decency, Portrayal of Violence and Respect for Human Dignity’. Ofcom has also published advice in its Guidance Notes (issue ten: July 2012), setting clear technical standards and stipulating that “a warning (of flashing images) should only be used in place of adherence to the guidelines where it is editorially justified”. Ofcom's guidelines are based on scientific research.

Pornography: Internet

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will require internet service providers to introduce a default opt-in filter system for access to adult content on the internet.

Hugh Robertson: The Government have, in our response to the Department for Education's consultation on internet parental controls published in December last year, asked all internet service providers to actively encourage people to switch on parental controls if children are in the household and will be using the internet. “Actively encourage” means making the decision of whether to set up parental controls an unavoidable step for parents.
	In addition, the Government have asked that internet service providers put in place appropriate measures to check that the person setting controls is over the age of 18, and we are pressing for all of the information and communications technology (ICT) industries, including retailers and device manufacturers, to work together to develop universally available, family-friendly internet access which is easy to use.

Public Libraries: Internet

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many public libraries currently provide free internet access; and if she will publish a map showing all the public libraries that currently provide such access.

Hugh Robertson: The number of public libraries currently providing free internet access is not held centrally, as it is a matter for individual authorities. The Universal Offers initiative, launched in January this year by the Society of Chief Librarians (SCL), commented that most public libraries provide digital access for the community and have done so for some time. The SCL initiative, developed in partnership with Arts Council England and the Reading Agency, defines, as part of the Universal Digital Offer, the minimum that a public library authority should provide and that customers should expect from their public library. This includes free access to the internet for every customer (for a minimum period of time).

NORTHERN IRELAND

Horsemeat

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether there is an ongoing criminal investigation in Northern Ireland into the illegal adulteration of horsemeat.

Michael Penning: This is a devolved matter. The Northern Ireland Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development made a Statement to the Northern Ireland Assembly on 18 February in which she advised the Assembly that a criminal investigation was underway.
	The text of the statement can be found at the following link:
	http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/Assembly-Business/Official-Report/Reports-12-13/18-February-2013/#1

Organised Crime

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions (a) she and (b) Ministers in her Department have met the Northern Ireland Justice Minister to discuss (i) the proposed national crime agency and (ii) asset recovery in the last six months.

Theresa Villiers: In the last six months the Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Hemel Hempstead (Mike Penning), and I met regularly with the Northern Ireland Justice Minister to discuss a range of issues, including the proposed national crime agency and asset recovery, and we continue to do so.

TREASURY

Bonuses: EU Limit

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of Article 153 (5) of the treaty on the functioning of the EU on the proposed limit to be placed on bonuses by the EU.

Greg Clark: I refer my hon. Friend to the remarks I made to him in the Chamber today.

Employment

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the rate of employment growth in the UK.

Damian Collins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the rate of employment growth in the UK.

Sajid Javid: The latest figures show the largest annual increase in employment since 1989, and employment is now at its highest ever level of 29.7 million. Furthermore, over 2012 full-time employment increased by 394,000, and this is the largest increase since 2005. This means that employment is now over 300,000 higher than the OBR forecast in its June 2010 economic and fiscal outlook, with a net 1.1 million jobs created in the private sector since 2010 Q1.

Tax Gap

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps the Government are taking to close the tax gap.

David Gauke: The Government have invested nearly £1 billion in strengthening HM Revenue and Customs' response to evasion and avoidance, and HMRC is on course to bring in nearly £22 billion of additional tax by the end of this Parliament. HMRC is increasing the number of staff working on compliance and using innovative approaches to improve how it identifies and tackles evasion. We will soon introduce the UK's first General Anti-Abuse Rule, and HMRC will consult further on new information powers and penalties to target high-risk promoters.

National Infrastructure Plan

Geraint Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress has been made on implementing the national infrastructure plan.

Danny Alexander: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave today to the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith).

Bank Services

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of (a) the cost per switch to the current account provider that the customer is leaving and (b) the cost per switch to the current account provider that the customer is moving to under the proposals for seven-day current account switching.

Sajid Javid: The current account seven-day switching service is being delivered by the Payments Council on behalf of industry.
	The Payments Council gave evidence on the new switching service to the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards on 30 January 2013.
	A record of the full evidence can be found here:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/jt201213/jtselect/jtpcbs/c606-xxix/c60601.htm

Bank Services

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of personal current account customers who will currently be unable to switch in seven days in September due to their bank's non-participation.

Sajid Javid: The current account seven-day switching service is being delivered by the Payments Council on behalf of industry.
	The Payments Council estimate that 99% of all UK personal current accounts will be covered by the new service.

Banks

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps the Government are taking to review banking sector infrastructure.

Danny Alexander: HM Treasury works with the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority to ensure the resilience of critical financial infrastructure and produces an annual Finance Sector Resilience Plan. An unclassified version is published each year on the Cabinet Office website. This is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/62312/Summary-2012-Sector-Resilience-Plans.pdf
	As the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in February, the Government also intend to bring payment systems—the critical infrastructure that ensures payments are able to move around the banking system—into regulation. An HM Treasury consultation on this will be released shortly.

Banks: Computer Software

Derek Twigg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the increase in software update faults in the British banking sector that have caused account disruptions in their banking services during the last two years.

Sajid Javid: The Financial Services Authority (FSA)—and its successor body the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)—work closely with banks to ensure that their systems are operating correctly, to resolve any difficulties and to minimise disruption for customers. The FSA is working with the Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBSG) following the problems experienced last week.

Housing: Construction

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to tax changes to facilitate development on undeveloped residential housing sites with historic planning permission; and if he will make a statement.

Danny Alexander: The Government have no intention to introduce tax changes to facilitate development on undeveloped residential housing sites with historic planning permission. The Government are instead focusing on other more effective measures to address stalled sites, such as renegotiation of unviable section 106 affordable housing agreements.

Taxation: Construction

Natascha Engel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many companies were fined for wrongly recording the employment status of their workers under the Construction Industry Scheme in each of the last five years.

David Gauke: The information is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Taxation: Developing Countries

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to ensure UK-listed companies report more information on their tax affairs in developing countries and pass this information on to the relevant tax authorities.

David Gauke: The UK supports requirements under the EU accounting and transparency directives for extractives companies to ensure that they disclose the payments they make to Government. This will significantly increase transparency for all EU-owned large extractive companies operating worldwide.
	The UK plays a leading role in supporting developing countries to access sustainable sources of revenue, including through increasing transparency in the extractives sector to address corruption.
	One of the Governments key priorities on tax and development is to ensure that developing countries can benefit from international advances on tax transparency and exchange of information as these are important tools in identifying and tackling international tax avoidance and evasion.

Tourism

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate HM Treasury has made of the contribution of the tourism industry to the Government's target to double exports by 2020.

Hugh Robertson: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
	In 2011, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Balance of Payments, tourist and business spend contributed at least £22 billion towards UK travel exports. The contribution of the sector to the economy continues to grow. According to the latest figures from VisitBritain, the industry is projected to achieve 33% growth in the number of international visits by 2020, up from 30 million to 40 million a year. This will result in an extra £9 billion GDP contribution (today's prices) to the economy, leading to the creation of 200,000 new jobs. Recent figures show that we are on track to meet these targets. VisitBritain activity delivered £503 million in incremental spend (financial year 2011-12) against a target of £373 million. The domestic market is also showing significant growth. In the eight-month period from early March to the end of October, it is estimated that the ‘Holidays at Home are GREAT’ campaign and other related VisitEngland activity has already generated incremental spend of almost £300 million, against a target of £500 million over four years.

Trade Competitiveness

Jessica Lee: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the UK's business competitiveness.

David Gauke: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer the Chancellor of the Exchequer gave earlier today to my hon. Friend the Member for Devizes (Claire Perry).

UK Membership of EU

Peter Bone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the net cost to the UK of membership of the EU over the lifetime of this Parliament.

Greg Clark: Figures for the UK's net contribution to the EU over the period 2005-06 to 2011-12 were published in Table 3c (page 17) of “European Union Finances 2012” (Cm 8405), a copy of which can be found in the House Library, also available online at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/eu_finances_2012.pdf
	Forecasts of contributions to the EU were published by the OBR on 5 December 2012. This can be found in table 2.19 of “Economic and Fiscal Outlook Supplementary Tables” at:
	http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-december-2012/
	The OBR will update its forecasts at the time of the Budget 2013.

Unemployment: Young People

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 25 February 2013, Official Report, column 197W, on unemployment: young people, how many young people have been supported by the Youth Contract in (a) England, (b) the West Midlands and (c) Birmingham to date.

Mark Hoban: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	The Youth Contract has a number of elements; the Department for Work and Pensions delivers some, but not all, of these elements.
	Statistics on work experience and sector-based work academies are available at the following link. These programmes were in place before the introduction of the Youth Contract. Statistics on these elements of the Youth Contract are included within these published data, which include breakdowns such as age group or region.
	http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/pwp/pwp_gbw_feb13.pdf
	In most cases the wage incentive element of the Youth Contract is paid after a young person has been in work continuously for 26 weeks. Following the collection and quality assurance of these data, the first set of Official Statistics on the wage incentive should be available in the next few months.
	The Youth Contract also includes additional advisor support for young people. There will be no official statistics on this element.
	The support for 16 to 17-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEETs) element of the Youth Contract is owned by the Department for Education.
	The Apprenticeship Grants for Employers (AGE 16-24) element of the Youth Contract is owned by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

VAT: Energy

Luciana Berger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the amount of additional revenue that would be received by the Exchequer if the rate of VAT on energy- saving materials was increased to 20 per cent;
	(2)  how much the Exchequer received in VAT receipts from purchases of energy-saving materials in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

David Gauke: VAT is charged at the reduced rate of 5% on the supply and installation of certain energy-saving materials when they are installed as a stand-alone project. Where these are installed as part of a wider building project, both supply and installation is standard rated for VAT.
	HM Revenue and Customs publishes estimates of the cost of tax allowances and reliefs to the Exchequer in the table at the following address.
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/expenditures/table-b1.pdf
	The table shows that removing the existing reduced rate for the supply and installation of energy-saving materials for qualifying projects would generate approximately £20 million additional revenue per year (excluding allowances for behavioural effects).
	The information on VAT receipts from total purchases of energy saving materials is not available. However, an estimate of VAT receipts from energy- saving materials subject to the reduced rate can be inferred using the information in the table above at around £5 million per annum for 2010, 2011 and 2012.

VAT: Tourism

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the value of lowering VAT for businesses involved in UK tourism.

David Gauke: The Treasury has worked closely with industry representatives to consider the impact of a VAT cut for the tourism sector on growth and jobs. The conclusion the Government have reached is that a VAT cut would not produce sufficient economic growth to outweigh the revenue shortfall. A VAT cut for this sector would therefore need to be funded either by additional borrowing or by raising other taxes, both of which are likely to have a negative effect on the economy. The Government therefore have no plans to introduce a VAT cut for this sector.

EDUCATION

Academies

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many sponsor-led academy schools were judged (a) outstanding, (b) good, (c) satisfactory and (d) inadequate by Ofsted in each year since 2008, broken down by academy sponsor.

David Laws: holding answer 25 February 2013
	This question is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, wrote to the hon. Lady on 14 February. A copy of his response has been placed in the House Libraries.

Academies: Freedom of Information

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department provides to academies about responding to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 11 March 2013
	The Department for Education (DFE) has produced a guide to help academies respond to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act. The guide is available for academies to download from the DFE's website.

Child Poverty

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of three to five-year-olds were living in (a) workless households and (b) relative poverty in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	The requested information for part (a) is produced by the Office for National Statistics and part (b) is produced by the Department for Work and Pensions.
	(a) The number of children aged three to five living in workless households in the UK is estimated at 17.4% (413,000 children) for the period of April to June 2012, the latest period for which data are available. These data have been sourced from the Labour Force Survey and define a workless household as a household that includes at least one person aged 16 to 64 where no-one aged 16 or over is in employment.
	(b) Table 1 shows the number and proportion of three to five-year-olds living in relative poverty on a Before Housing Costs basis in the UK for 2010-11, the latest period for which figures are available.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number and proportion of three to five-year-olds living in relative poverty, on a Before Housing Costs basis, United Kingdom, 2010-11 
			  Number (million) Proportion (%) 
			 Three to five-year-olds 0.4 16 
			 Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data sourced from the 2010-11 Family Resources Survey (FRS). This uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 2. Net disposable incomes have been used to answer the question. This includes earnings from employment and self-employment, state support, income from occupational and private pensions, investment income and other sources. Income tax payments, national insurance contributions, council tax/domestic rates and some other payments are deducted from incomes. 3. Figures have been presented on a Before Housing Cost basis, in line with the relative child poverty target set out in the Child Poverty Act 2010. For Before Housing Costs, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, buildings insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income. 4. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 5. The reference period for HBAI figures is the financial year. 6. Numbers of children have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 children. 7. Proportions of children in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. 8. Statistics covering 2010-11 are the most recent available. 9. Relative poverty is defined as being in a household with a household income of less than 60% of contemporary median income. Source: FRS 2010-11 
		
	
	Further information can be found in the Households Below Average Income series published at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai/hbai2011/index.php?page=contents
	The 2011-12 edition of Households Below Average Income is due to be published by the Department of Work and Pensions in May/June 2013.
	Income matters, but considering this in isolation fails to properly reflect the reality of child poverty in the UK today. We want to develop better measures of child poverty which include income but provide a more accurate picture of the reality of child poverty. Our consultation on how best to measure child poverty closed on 15 February. A large volume of responses was received and all of these are being read and analysed to ensure that all important points are captured and used to help Ministers decide on the next steps.

Curriculum

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for what reason there is a break between his Department's consultation on the curriculum for key stages 3 and 4 and consideration of the programmes of study at key stage 4.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 4 March 2013
	We are not consulting formally on the draft key stage 4 programmes of study for English, mathematics and science as part of the current statutory consultation because we believe that it is important to consider the content of these programmes of study alongside the new requirements for the subject content of the reformed GCSE qualifications in these subjects. This will ensure that the curriculum and qualifications are fully coherent. We will, therefore, provide further details of the reformed GCSEs later this year and launch the statutory consultation on key stage 4 programmes of study for English, mathematics and science once that information is in the public domain.
	We have, however, published these drafts alongside this consultation for illustrative purposes and respondents can provide comments on them if they wish.

Email

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to discourage the use of private email accounts by Ministers and special advisers in his Department further to the Information Commissioner's Good Practice Visit Findings published on 15 December 2011.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 6 March 2013
	The Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), and his special advisers use equipment and systems provided by the Department and their own IT equipment as appropriate, depending on their location and circumstances. Where information is generated in the course of conducting Government business, it is stored on departmental systems. This complies with the Information Commissioner's recommendation that:
	“Where necessity prompts the use of private email for departmental business, DfE guidance should be clear that a departmental email address must be copied in to ensure the completeness of the department's records.”

GCE AS-level

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which university bodies supported the proposed measures to establish AS levels as a stand-alone qualification.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 1 March 2013
	I have discussed our plans for A level reform with a wide range of organisations and individuals, including the Russell Group and Universities UK. These discussions and Ofqual's consultation showed widespread support for the AS level, so we are retaining it as a stand-alone qualification to support breadth.

GCE AS-level

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the effect of the proposed establishment of AS levels as a stand-alone qualification on the take-up of each subject at AS level.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 1 March 2013
	The AS will be retained as a stand-alone qualification to offer breadth. It is for schools to determine the number and range of AS qualifications they offer, based on their own school's circumstances and the needs of their pupils.

GCE AS-level

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  which universities use AS levels as a means of assessing applicant potential for the purposes of admission decisions;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the effect of the proposed establishment of AS levels as a stand-alone qualification on universities' ability to consider applicant potential.

Elizabeth Truss: holding answer 1 March 2013
	We know that universities use a range of information and evidence about applicants for admissions purposes. Even within individual universities, there may be a variety of approaches between subjects. Changes to the AS and A levels mean that some universities may need to make changes to admissions processes. However, Ofqual's consultation on A level reform found that for many universities the removal of AS would not have a major impact on selection processes.

Schools: Redundancy

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much money has been paid out from departmental funds to cover the cost of redundancies in academies and free schools in the last two years.

Elizabeth Truss: The Education Funding Agency is responsible for the payment of redundancy and restructuring funding to open academies and free schools in accordance with the individual Funding Agreement.
	The amounts paid in 2011-12 and 2012-13 (to date) are as follows:
	April 2011 to March 2012: £7,166,613
	April 2012 to date: £3,762,424.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Anti-social Behaviour Bill (Draft)

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions Ministers in her Department have had with local authorities on the draft Anti-social Behaviour Bill and the intention in that Bill to repeal dog control orders.

Jeremy Browne: Home Office Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of individuals and organisations as part of the process of policy development and details of these are published quarterly on the Cabinet Office website. We have consulted extensively on our antisocial behaviour reforms, and local authorities have played a crucial role in shaping the draft Bill, including the Community Protection Order (Public Space), which will replace dog control orders.

British Nationality

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2013, Official Report, column 788W, on British nationality, which of the litigations relating to Mahdi Hashi are within the jurisdiction of the British courts.

Mark Harper: Within the jurisdiction of the British courts Mr Hashi has lodged an appeal with the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.

Child Abuse

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of her Department's budget was allocated to tackling child abuse and the viewing of images of child abuse online in each of the last five years.

Jeremy Browne: The Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre is the UK's national law enforcement agency committed to preventing and tackling the sexual abuse of children in both the online and offline environments with the principal aim of identifying, locating and safeguarding children and young people from threat, harm and risk.
	Over the past five years, the Government have provided funding for the Centre of:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2008-09 6.27 
			 2009-10 6.353 
			 2010-11 6.44 
			 2011-12 6.38 
			 2012-13 6.381 
		
	
	CEOP also has other sources of funding available to it, in addition to its Government funding. Close partnership working with, among others, the private and voluntary sectors is key to its success.
	In addition, chief constables and police and crime commissioners have their normal policing budgets, which they are able to use on the priorities for their forces. Any decision on funding or staffing for child protection activity is a matter for the chief constables and police and crime commissioners for their area.

Civil Liberties

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she has taken to ensure that respect for civil liberties is considered at each stage of her Department's policy-making process.

James Brokenshire: Since 2010, this Government have taken a number of important steps to meet our strong commitment to protect the hard-won civil liberties of UK citizens, including passing the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.
	Respect for civil liberties is clearly a very important consideration during policy development in this Department, an issue which will also be explored during any public consultation or the passage of any policy proposals through Parliament.

Communications Data Bill (Draft)

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what organisations or individuals she has met to discuss revisions of the draft Communications Data Bill.

James Brokenshire: Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a variety of organisations and individuals as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of these meetings are published on the Cabinet Office website on a quarterly basis.

Customs: Drugs

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much illegal medication has been confiscated at UK borders in each of the last five years.

Mark Harper: Border Force does not specifically record seizures of illegal medication. These are included, depending on the drug class, within other class A/B/C seizures as published in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin ‘Seizures of Drugs in England and Wales’, which is accompanied by a Border Force publication covering drugs seizures within the UK. The Home Office bulletin is a yearly publication which covers the last 10 years and the Border Force figures, which are published on a quarterly basis, cover 2011-12 onwards.
	Border Force figures
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/drug-seizures/
	Home Office statistics
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/police-research/hosb1212/hosb1212?view=Binary
	Border Forces does not hold specific data on seizures of counterfeit medicines.

Deportation: Offenders

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many offenders who are European economic area nationals were subject to removal from the UK in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012;
	(2)  how many offenders who are European economic area nationals were subject to removal from the UK after serving custodial sentences of less than 24 months in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

Mark Harper: The following table shows the number of offenders who are European economic area nationals who were removed from the UK in (a) 2010, (b)2011 and (c) 2012. The data for 2012 are correct as at 31 December 2012.
	
		
			 Calendar year Total number of EEA foreign nationals who were subject to removal from the UK. 
			 2010 933 
			 2011 1,148 
			 2012 1,559 
		
	
	The data in the following table show the number of offenders who are European economic area nationals who were removed from the UK after serving custodial sentences of less than 24 months in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012. The data for 2012 are correct as at 31 December 2012.
	
		
			 Calendar year Total number of EEA foreign nationals subject to removal from the UK after serving sentence of less than 24 months 
			 2010 409 
			 2011 542 
			 2012 798 
		
	
	Please note that this is internal management information and is subject to change.

Detica

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many BAE Systems Detica staff (a) are currently working on and (b) have previously worked on the Communications Capability Development programme.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 11 March 2013
	The Communications Capabilities Development programme currently has a number of Detica (BAE Systems Detica) personnel deployed on the programme through the Client-side Support Services contract. Over the lifetime of the contract the number of personnel deployed has varied, responding to business need.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2013, Official Report, column 12W, on entry clearances: overseas students, 
	(1)  what the estimated completion date for the detailed planning that is being undertaken to assess the costs of the interviewing programme is; and what additional resources will be required;
	(2)  whether the out-of-country student visa interviews will be carried out entirely by UK Border Agency staff.

Mark Harper: Planning for the overseas interviewing programme is progressing well, including working through the costs and resource requirements. The staffing model for the programme will be confirmed in due course.

Human Trafficking

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which shelters for victims of human trafficking the Minister for Immigration has visited since his appointment; and if she will make a statement.

Mark Harper: Responsibility for support for victims of human trafficking rests with the Ministry of Justice. The Minister for Victims and the Courts, my hon. Friend the Member for Maidstone and The Weald (Mrs Grant), visited a victims' shelter on Anti-Slavery Day, 18 October 2012. I have not yet had the opportunity to undertake such a visit.

Immigration: Applications

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases for applications for extensions for domestic servants are outstanding.

Mark Harper: There were 704 overseas domestic workers applications awaiting a decision as of 27 January 2013.
	Notes:
	1. All figures quoted have been derived from management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols.
	2. Figures relate to main applicants only.
	3. Figures relate to postal and premium applications.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many nationals of other EU member states who are classified as qualified persons under the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 (a) have and (b) do not have comprehensive sickness insurance cover in the UK; and how many such nationals (i) have and (ii) do not have sufficient resources not to become a burden on the social assistance system of the UK.

Mark Harper: holding answer 25 February 2013
	The UK does not operate a system of mandatory registration for EU nationals, though many EU nationals choose to apply to the UK Border Agency for documentation to evidence their rights.
	The UK Border Agency has strict checks in place to ensure that those EU nationals who apply for registration documentation meet the requirements set out in the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006, including, where appropriate, the requirement to hold comprehensive sickness insurance.
	For those who do choose to make an application, the data requested are not recorded centrally and the cost required to answer this would be disproportionate.
	Tackling the abuse of free movement rights and reducing the pull factors that attract migrants to the UK are priorities for the Home Office. As part of this work, I am chairing a cross-Government group of Ministers to examine controls on immigrants' access to benefits and public services.

Immigration: Married People

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many in-country applications for further leave to remain as a spouse are outstanding (a) six months and (b) one year after the claimant's biometrics were taken;
	(2)  how many in-country applications for further leave to remain as a spouse are being processed by the UK Border Agency;
	(3)  what progress she has made in reducing waiting times for in-country applications for leave to remain as a spouse since service improvement plans for such applications were implemented;
	(4)  how many in-country applications for leave to remain as a spouse are held by the UK Border Agency;
	(5)  how many in-country applications for leave to remain as a spouse are outstanding (a) six months and (b) one year since the claimant's biometrics were taken.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency does not hold the data in the format requested.

Independent Police Complaints Commission

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she plans to (a) reduce the number of managed investigations and (b) increase the number of independent investigations undertaken by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Damian Green: Responsibility for determining the mode of investigation in each individual case dealt with by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) lies with the IPCC. However, the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), made it clear to the House on 12 February 2013, Official Report, columns 713-14, that the Government intend to transfer resources from individual forces' professional standards departments and other relevant areas to the IPCC in order to ensure that it has the budget and the manpower that will enable it to do its work.

Members: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will arrange for the hon. Member for Walsall North to receive a reply from the Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency to his letter of 4 February 2013, CTS ref B3732/13.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency replied to the hon. Gentleman on 8 March 2013.

Mental Health Services: Restraint Techniques

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance her Department has issued to police forces on operating protocols when restraining patients in mental health wards or hospitals; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: Management of patients in hospitals and other health care settings is the responsibility of the relevant health care provider.

Olaseni Lewis

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she expects the Independent Police Complaints Commission to complete its review into the case of Olaseni Lewis, who died in September 2010; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: The time scale for completion of this review is an operational matter for the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Organised Crime: Northern Ireland

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many meetings (a) she and (b) Ministers in her Department have had with the Northern Ireland Justice Minister to discuss (i) the operation of the national crime agency and (ii) asset recovery proposals in the last six months.

Jeremy Browne: Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of these meetings are published on the Cabinet Office website on a quarterly basis.

Seahorses: Smuggling

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many seahorses have been confiscated at UK borders in each of the last five years.

Mark Harper: Border Force does not specifically record the number of seahorses seized at the border but groups them within: live animals and birds; parts and derivatives of endangered species; or in preparations of traditional medicines that include parts or derivatives of endangered species. The most recent published data on seizures, which were made available to the Environmental Audit Committee on Wildlife Crime, are as follows:
	
		
			 2008-09 
			  Number of seizures Number of items seized Weight of items seized (kg) 
			 Live animals and birds 37 1,212 n/a 
			 Parts and derivatives of endangered species 109 1,536 543 
			 Preparations of traditional medicines that include parts or derivatives of endangered species 63 4,435 309.3 
		
	
	
		
			 2009-10 
			  Number of seizures Number of items seized Weight of items seized (kg) 
			 Live animals and birds 21 563 n/a 
			 Parts and derivatives of animals or birds 99 509 20,002.8 
			 Preparations of traditional medicines that include parts or derivatives of endangered species 119 812,117 1,141 
		
	
	
		
			 2010-11 
			  Number of seizures Number of items seized Weight of items seized (kg) 
			 Live animals and birds 8 1,620 n/a 
			 Parts and derivatives of animals or birds 94 2,634 6.1 
			 Preparations of traditional medicines that include parts or derivatives of endangered species 173 32,239 519.3 
		
	
	The figures and the transcript of the Committee hearing can be found at:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmenvaud/140/140.pdf

UK Border Agency

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (a) what casework decisions are taken by and (b) what training is given to persons appointed as (i) administration officers and (ii) executive officers on temporary contracts within the UK Border Agency. [R]

Mark Harper: Temporary caseworkers are in place in several locations across the UK Border Agency and deal with applications for: settlement; leave to remain in the family route; accession casework (Bulgaria and Romania); and in Tiers 1, 2 and 5 of the points-based system.
	Initial training for both administrative officers and executive officers covers the immigration rules relevant to their assigned route and familiarisation with the relevant policy. This portion of the training lasts between two days and one week, dependant on route, and applies to both grades The subsequent mentoring period of between six to eight weeks consolidates the classroom training and also includes practical case processing functions.
	Staff complete a number of mandatory courses which are delivered by e-learning. These include health and safety, information storage and management and training in the safeguarding of children.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

British Overseas Territories

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many full-time equivalent civil servants in his Department are working on matters related to the UK Overseas Territories.

Richard Benyon: Issues relating to our UK Overseas Territories are dealt with by a number of DEFRA officials across a range of policy areas including project funding through the Darwin Initiative (and the new Overseas Territories Environment and Climate Fund, ‘Darwin Plus’), trade in endangered species, marine issues, migratory birds and invasive alien species. DEFRA also leads on the UK Government's Overseas Territories Biodiversity Strategy liaising closely with Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development officials on a range of Overseas Territories issues.
	As such it is difficult to accurately quantify the overall time spent on Overseas Territories issues by DEFRA officials. While there are no staff dedicated to working on Overseas Territory issues on a full-time basis, there is a dedicated focal point within the International Biodiversity Team.

Dangerous Dogs

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 6 February 2013, Official Report, on tackling irresponsible dog ownership, 
	(1)  if he will discuss with his counterparts in the devolved Administrations the potential for a UK-wide microchipping database;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of potential difficulties arising from cross-border issues in operating an England-only microchipping database;
	(3)  with regard to the one-stop 24 hour enquiry point for microchipped lost and found dogs (a) when this will be operational, (b) who the service will be operated by and (c) who will finance the service.

David Heath: There are no plans to introduce a single England or United Kingdom wide database which would be costly to set up. The four existing databases, that operate oh a United Kingdom wide basis, will continue to be used. DEFRA is now working with database providers to ensure minimum standards of service for commercial databases, including a one-stop 24 hour inquiry point (web portal) for lost and found microchipped dogs. Discussions are ongoing and progress is being made by the existing databases to facilitate this service and further details should be finalised later this year. Cross border issues within the United Kingdom are being considered with the devolved Administrations.

Dangerous Dogs

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 6 February 2013, Official Report, on tackling irresponsible dog ownership, 
	(1)  what information his Department holds on the proportion of dogs which are currently microchipped;
	(2)  what level of microchipping would constitute a high compliance rate.

David Heath: This information is set out in the draft impact assessment published in April 2012. It is estimated that 58% of dogs in England are currently microchipped with the preferred option leading to 80% of currently un-microchipped dogs becoming microchipped. The Government, working with animal welfare charities and others, are making the provision of microchipping as simple and cheap as possible. In addition, any owners of dogs that are brought to the attention of the authorities and that are not microchipped after April 2016 will be reminded about the law and that the cost of microchipping is cheaper than paying a fine.

Dangerous Dogs

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 6 February 2013, Official Report , on tackling irresponsible dog ownership, when he plans to publish his draft updated implementation guidance and training.

David Heath: Implementation guidance and training are in the process of being reviewed and revised by industry stakeholders. DEFRA plans to publish these this year once they have been considered and agreed.

Dogs: Animal Welfare

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will review his policy on the docking of tails of working dogs.

David Heath: The docking of dogs' tails is covered by the provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. The statute was last reviewed in 2010 by the Parliamentary Select Committee on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and there are no plans to change the current law.

Food: Origin Marking

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what bilateral trade agreements exist between the EU and other importing countries that allow for the enforcement of European Protected Foods status.

Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	Bilateral agreements between the EU and third countries are one of the key ways the EU implements its strategy for the enforcement of intellectual property rights in third countries, including the intellectual property associated with protected food names.
	Bilateral trade agreements are just one form of EU agreement which allow for the enforcement of EU protected food name status. Such agreements in force include the EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement, the EU-Andean Community Free Trade Agreement (provisionally applied with Peru only so far), and the EU-Chile Free Trade Agreement.
	In addition there are bilateral trade agreements pending implementation or agreements largely implemented but with the chapter(s) relevant to EU protected food name status still pending. These include the EU-Caribbean Economic Partnership Agreement, the EU-Central Africa Economic Partnership Agreement, the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement and the EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement.
	Bilateral agreements specifically relating to geographic indicators (which may include GIs applying under the protected food names scheme) exist between the EU and third countries. Examples include agreements with China, Georgia and Moldova.

Horsemeat

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what tests have taken place in each of the last three years in the UK on (a) horsemeat destined for the human food chain, (b) the duplication of horse passports and (c) horse abattoirs.

David Heath: The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) is responsible for implementation in the UK of the statutory residues surveillance programme required by Council Directive 96/23/EC. Set out in the following table are the number of samples taken from horses in UK abattoirs and the number of positive results for veterinary medicine residues and other substances from 2010 to 2012:
	
		
			  Number of VMD samples tested Number of samples tested for phenylbutazone Positive samples 
			 2010 94 60 5 (phenylbutazone) 
			     
			 2011 102 68 1 (phenylbutazone) 
			     
			 2012 182 (1)158 5 (phenylbutazone NSS(2)) 
			    4 (phenylbutazone FSA) 
			    2 (cadmium) 
			    1 (ibuprofen) 
			 (1) Includes the supplementary samples taken by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in 2012. (2) National Surveillance Scheme (NSS). 
		
	
	None of the follow-up investigations into the positive results revealed that a duplicate horse passport had been issued.
	Duplicate horse passports may be issued by approved passport issuing organisations where the original document has been lost but the animal's identity can be established. Such documents are issued to exclude the animal from slaughter for human consumption. It is an offence to apply for a duplicate passport in other circumstances and it is an offence to be in possession of a passport knowing it to be forged.
	Abattoirs operate under the supervision of the Food Standards Agency, who have staff on site during killing. The Food Standards Agency is responsible for verifying identity checks carried out by food business operators.

Packaging: Recycling

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that revenue generated by the packaging waste recovery note system is reinvested in the UK's recycling infrastructure.

Richard Benyon: The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007 (as amended) established a market-based mechanism through which revenue is generated to support the collection and recycling of packaging waste materials. The regulations require reprocessors and exporters to submit a business plan containing information on how their revenue will be invested in infrastructure and capacity for collecting, sorting, treating and reprocessing packaging waste, as part of their application for accreditation.
	As part of an ongoing review of the regulations, DEFRA is considering options for improving the transparency of funding flows.

Rabies

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when his Department will announce proposals on a UK rabies strategy.

David Heath: Arrangements for managing a rabies incident in the UK are set out in the Rabies Control Strategy for England and Wales, the Scottish Government's Rabies Control Strategy and, in Northern Ireland, by the Department for Agriculture and Rural Development's Rabies Disease Control Strategy.
	In the event of a rabies incident in the UK, there would be a co-ordinated approach to disease control and eradication, with close working between each country's Administration and operational partners. These arrangements are set out in the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Contingency Plan for Exotic Notifiable Diseases of Animals.

Special Areas of Conservation

Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of the seabed within the UK's Exclusive Economic Zone is protected by Special Areas of Conservation.

Richard Benyon: Within the UK Continental Shelf Designated Area, 8.4% (over 875,000 sq km), is covered by European Marine Sites (Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas). The proportion of that area covered only by Special Areas of Conservation is 7.6%.
	The area of English inshore waters covered by European Marine Sites is approximately 23%, 15.5% of which is contained within Special Areas of Conservation.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Burma

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much the Government of Burma spent on aid to internally displaced people in Karen State in 2012.

Alan Duncan: Neither Her Majesty's Government nor the United Nations currently hold this information; the level of published data on Government expenditure in Burma is limited.

Developing Countries: Economic Situation

Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  whether her Department has undertaken an analysis of any correlation or causal relationship between economic development and the rate of population growth;
	(2)  what comparative analysis her Department has undertaken of the correlation between the level of economic development and the rate of population growth.

Lynne Featherstone: DFID has not conducted its own direct research or analysis, but instead uses the wealth of independent research and analysis undertaken by a range of UK and international academic and civil society organisations.
	There is strong evidence, for example, that fertility decline can help countries start a process of demographic transition following a period of population growth, (where the working age population is increasing faster than the population in less productive age groups). But turning this transition into a dividend of accelerated economic progress depends on countries' policies, including investment in education and training, to support increases in employment.
	There is good evidence of a two-way causal relationship between economic development and population growth. Fertility tends to decline as development expands, and development has often been described as the best contraceptive. Increased employment of women and higher quality education and training may help inflate the demographic dividend, while declining family sizes can make the escape from poverty more feasible and typically improves schooling outcomes. Fertility reduction has a large, direct effect on maternal mortality and enables women to participate more fully in life outside the home.

G8

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her priorities are in relation to aid for the G8 summit in Northern Ireland.

Alan Duncan: As the Prime Minister said his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, aid has played, and will continue to play, an important role in development, but we want to use our G8 presidency to tackle the causes, and not just the symptoms, of poverty. Through addressing the key issues the Prime Minister has outlined for the G8 in 2013—advancing trade, ensuring tax compliance and promoting greater transparency—we can help to move the international agenda forward, to focus on the underlying drivers of growth and jobs which will lift people out of poverty for good.
	Through this agenda, we will take action to promote greater transparency around the extractives industries, in order to increase revenues from natural resources so that they are available for investment in tackling the issues that affect the poorest people. We will galvanise support for land transparency, to promote more responsible and productive investments in agriculture. We will also work to help developing countries collect the tax they are owed, and we will promote trade, to spur growth and wealth creation.
	We are also committed to tackling the problem of hunger in the year of our G8 presidency. We will build on last year's Olympic Hunger Summit with a major hunger event on 8 June and we will take forwards the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, which was launched at last year's G8 and aims to lift 50 million people out of poverty over the next 10 years through sustainable agricultural growth.

International Assistance

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which (a) countries received bilateral aid and (b) organisations received multilateral aid from the (i) UK and (ii) EU in the last three years; and how much aid was received in each such case.

Alan Duncan: The publication 'Statistics on International Development (SID) 2012' provides information on how official UK financial resources for international development are spent. Tables 16.2 to 16.6 provide a breakdown of all countries in receipt of UK bilateral aid for each region for the calendar years 2007 to 2011. Table 18 provides information on organisations in receipt of UK multilateral aid for the financial years 2007-08 to 2011-12.
	These tables can be found at the following link:
	http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Aid-Statistics/Statistics-on-International-Development-2012/SID-2012-Tables-Index/
	The EuropeAid Annual Report contains information on the European Union's development and external assistance policies and implementation. Table 5.11 (in 2012 and 2011) and table 6.10 (in 2010) contain information on the countries and multilateral organisations that receive ODA from the EU. The EuropeAid Annual Reports for 2010, 2011 and 2012 can be found at the following link:
	http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/multimedia/publications/index_en.htm

Overseas Aid

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was spent in cash terms on overseas aid in the last Parliament; and how much she estimates will be spent in this Parliament.

Justine Greening: DFID's publication ‘Statistics on International Development’ (SID) shows how official UK financial resources for international development are spent. The total UK Gross Public Expenditure (GPEX) on development aid for the last Parliament (2005-06 to 2009-10) was £35.3 billion. Total GPEX on development aid for the current Parliament thus far (from 2010-11 to 2011-12) has been £18.0 billion. The total GPEX for each year 2005-06 to 2011-12 is shown in the following table. The total GPEX on development aid for 2012-13 will be reported in ‘Statistics on international Development 2013’ when it is published in the autumn. Budgets for 2013-14 and 2014-15 have been set to ensure the UK will meet the Government's target of spending 0.7% GNI as Official Development Assistance (ODA) in 2013 and 2014.
	
		
			  Total GPEX on development (£ billion) 
			 2005-06 6.7 
			 2006-07 7.6 
			 2007-08 6.0 
			 2008-09 7.2 
			 2009-10 7.8 
			 2010-11 9.0 
			 2011-12 9.0 
		
	
	More information can be found at the following link:
	http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Aid-Statistics/

Palestinians

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Duncan: The UK Government are deeply concerned by the humanitarian situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Access to water and land in Area C of the West Bank is restricted, causing loss of livelihoods and high levels of food insecurity. The Palestinian Authority is unable to deliver basic education and health care services. The situation in Gaza is also unsustainable. 44% of Gazans are food insecure and over 90% of the water from the Gaza aquifer is unsafe for human consumption without treatment.

Plants

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much her Department spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees in each year between 2005 and 2010.

Alan Duncan: DFlD's expenditure on indoor and outdoor plants and trees at its two headquarters offices in East Kilbride and London in each year was:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2005 2,223 
			 2006 1,231 
			 2007 1,328 
			 2008 1,014 
			 2009 0 
			 2010 0 
		
	
	Since 2010 there has been no expenditure on indoor and outdoor plants and trees.

Public Expenditure

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department's budget as a percentage of (a) gross national income (b) gross public expenditure and (c) gross domestic product was in each year since 1997.

Alan Duncan: The following table provides figures on DFID's total budget as a proportion of gross national income (GNI), gross domestic product (GDP) and public sector total managed expenditure (TME) for the financial years 1997-98 to 2011-12.
	
		
			  Total DFID DEL budget (£ million) Total budget as percentage of GNI Total budget as percentage of GDP Total budget as percentage of TME 
			 1997-98 1,685 0.20 0.20 0.52 
			 1998-99 2,087 0.23 0.23 0.63 
			 1999-2000 2,316 0.25 0.25 0.68 
			 2000-01 2,445 0.25 0.25 0.72 
			 2001-02 3,115 0.30 0.30 0.80 
		
	
	
		
			 2002-03 2,898 0.26 0.27 0.69 
			 2003-04 3,064 0.26 0.27 0.67 
			 2004-05 3,349 0.27 0.28 0.68 
			 2005-06 4,518 0.35 0.35 0.86 
			 2006-07 5,016 0.37 0.37 0.91 
			 2007-08 5,277 0.36 0.37 0.90 
			 2003-09 5,707 0.39 0.40 0.86 
			 2009-10 6,726 0.47 0.48 0.95 
			 2010-11 7,545 0.50 0.51 1.04 
			 2011-12 7,830 0.51 0.51 1.07 
			 Note: The figures given above differ from figures relating to total UK spending on Official Development Assistance (ODA). UK ODA is reported on a calendar year rather than financial year basis and includes spend by other Government Departments. Figures on UK ODA can be found at the following link: http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Aid-Statistics/Statistics-on-International-Development-2012/

Public Expenditure

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department's budget per annum was since 1997.

Alan Duncan: The following table provides information about DFID's budget in each year from 1997-98.
	
		
			  DFID Budget: Total DEL (£) 
			 1997-98 1,685 
			 1998-99 2,087 
			 1999-2000 2,316 
			 2000-01 2,445 
			 2001-02 3,115 
			 2002-03 2,898 
			 2003-04 3,064 
			 2004-05 3,349 
			 2005-06 4,518 
			 2006-07 5,016 
			 2007-08 5,277 
			 2008-09 5,707 
			 2009-10 6,726 
			 2010-11 7,545 
			 2011-12 7,830 
			 Note: DEL refers to Department Expenditure Limits. This is the total spending limits for governmental Departments over a fixed period of time, excluding demand-led and exceptionally volatile items. DELs are planned and set at spending reviews. This is split between resource and capital budgets.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service training teams are currently in Afghanistan; where any such teams are based; and what their tasks are.

Andrew Robathan: The information requested for the whole of Afghanistan or the International Security Assistance Force is not held centrally by the Ministry of Defence. Data provided are for the Task Force Helmand area of operations which includes the majority of UK forces deployed to Afghanistan.
	Task Force Helmand has six Police advisory teams involved in the development of the Afghan National Police (ANP). Four of these teams are based in Lashkar Gah, one in Shawqat and one in Gereshk. These teams assist the ANP in their training and use of enablers.
	Task Force Helmand currently has five Brigade advisory teams who work with the Afghan National Army to support the transition of lead security responsibility. Three of these teams are based at Main Operating Base Price, one at Forward Operating Base Sparta and one at Forward Operating Base Shawqat.
	There is also one Brigade advisory team based outside of Task Force Helmand's are of operation in Camp Shorabak next to Camp Bastion. These teams are formed advisory teams; a wide range of other units and individuals provide partnering, advice and support to Afghan forces, in Helmand and elsewhere; for example, personnel assisting the training of the Afghan Air Force.

Armed Forces: Pensions

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  if he plans to review his policy on pension payments towards members of the armed forces who have an interrupted service career history;
	(2)  what his policy is on pension payments towards those who have previously had a break in service in HM armed forces; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: Service personnel who are previous members of the armed forces and who have preserved benefits will retain these preserved awards and these will be paid in accordance with the relevant scheme rules. Members of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) 75 or AFPS 05 are entitled to add these separate periods of service together if they so choose. This means that when the pension becomes payable it will be calculated on the total number of days reckonable service from both periods of service. However, if a member of the scheme has more than one period of previous service they can only add the last period of service to their current service.
	The new scheme will contain provisions to link service after a break of less than five years and members transferring between public service schemes will be treated as having continuous service. This is set out in the final agreement on the main parameters of the new Armed Forces Pension Scheme to be introduced on 1 April 2015.

Armed Forces: Recruitment

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information his Department has collected in the last 10 years on the fitness levels and educational attainment of young people wishing to join the armed forces; what assessment he has made of that information; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: The services have collected information on fitness levels over the last seven years and on educational qualifications over the past 10 years as part of the eligibility criteria for joining the armed forces. While the required fitness level is broadly similar across the services, each specialisation has its own educational criteria, ranging from nil to professionally qualified, as a pre-requisite for joining a given branch or trade.
	The data collected on fitness levels and educational attainment are used for the specific purpose of confirming an individual's eligibility for service.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress he has made on the Warrior Capability Sustainment programme; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: The Warrior Capability Sustainment programme (WCSP) is on target to meet the approved in-service date of November 2018 and continues to make good progress through the Demonstration Phase.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his plans are to replace or upgrade the Army's mechanised and armoured personnel carriers; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: The Defence Equipment Plan 2012, published on the 31 January 2013, laid out the Ministry of Defence (MOD) future equipment investment plans. These plans include an upgrade to our fleet of Warrior infantry fighting vehicles, maintaining their capability with enhanced lethality out to 2040 and beyond.
	The continued development of the next generation of armoured fighting vehicles including specialist and utility variants will also replace a wide range of legacy armoured and protected platforms.

Challenger Tanks

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to upgrade the anti-armour lethality of Challenger 2.

Philip Dunne: We are currently in the early stages of a programme to extend Challenger 2 in service to 2035. The detailed scope and requirements for this Life Extension Programme are currently being investigated and specified. They will be considered at Initial Gate, currently scheduled to take place in 2014.

Federation of Small Businesses

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions Ministers in his Department met with the Federation of Small Businesses in the latest period for which figures are available.

Philip Dunne: Since May 2010, Defence Ministers have met representatives from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) on seven occasions. On one occasion they attended the Defence Suppliers Forum chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence which I also attended. There were also six occasions when the FSB attended the Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Forum which I chair.

Future Large Aircraft

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the timetable for delivery of the A400M aircraft is.

Philip Dunne: The UK has ordered 22 A400M aircraft with the first one due to be delivered by Airbus Military in autumn 2014, and the final one in autumn 2021.
	The following table shows the aircraft delivery schedule by calendar year:
	
		
			 Calendar year Number of aircraft to be delivered 
			 2014 3 
			 2015 8 
			 2016 6 
			 2017 2 
			 2018 2 
			 2019 0 
			 2020 0 
			 2021 1

Service Personnel: Germany

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many spouses of service personnel are based in Germany.

Mark Francois: As at 1 February 2013, there were approximately 6,370 spouses, including civil partners, of service personnel based in Germany.

GPT

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on which dates (a) officials and (b) Ministers in his Department have met representatives of (i) GPT Special Project Management Ltd and (ii) the Serious Fraud Office to discuss allegations of bribery by GPT Special Project Management Ltd since 1 January 2012.

Philip Dunne: Ministry of Defence (MOD) officials meet regularly with representatives of GPT Special Project Management Ltd to discuss project progress, technical and commercial matters. Since 1 January 2012 no MOD officials or Defence Ministers have met with GPT Special Project Management Ltd, or the Serious Fraud Office to discuss allegations of bribery.

Iraq

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2013, Official Report, column 78W, on depleted uranium, whether his Department's environmental monitoring of depleted uranium (DU) in Iraq is sufficiently detailed to support the belief that presence of DU are at levels too low to have any detectable health impact on civilians in Iraq.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 11 March 2013
	Yes.

Military Police

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many members of the Ministry of Defence Police were stationed at each service manned quarters in the UK in each year since 2005; and how many police will be stationed at each such site in each of the next three years;
	(2)  how many members of Ministry of Defence Police are employed to protect the UK's nuclear deterrent;
	(3)  how many members of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Police have been stationed at MoD Faslane and Coulport since 2005; and how many such police are projected to be stationed at those sites in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015.

Mark Francois: I am withholding the numbers of Ministry of Defence Police stationed at these sites for the purpose of safeguarding national security.

MOD Caledonia

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the number of Royal Navy personnel that will be based at MOD Caledonia in each year from 2013 to 2019.

Andrew Robathan: On current plans, some 95 Royal Navy personnel are expected to be based permanently at MOD Caledonia in each year from 2013 to 2019. These figures do not include the crews on the two Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers under construction at Rosyth, as the number of personnel accommodated at Caledonia will vary depending on the stage of the build.

Pipelines

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) process and (b) timescale are for the sale of the Government pipeline and storage system.

Philip Dunne: Provisions to enable the sale of the Government pipeline and storage system (GPSS) are included in this Session's Energy Bill. A decision to proceed with sale will not be made until the Bill has been approved and the Government can be sure that sale will deliver value for money.
	The intention is to go to market to invite bids for the GPSS in early 2014.

Pipelines

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what safeguards will be in place within the sale of the Government pipeline and storage system to protect the interests of the public.

Philip Dunne: Working with other Government Departments and our advisers we are considering what additional safeguards, if any, will need to be put in place once the Government pipeline and storage system is sold to protect the interests not only of the public but also customers, including the Ministry of Defence.
	All necessary safeguards will be identified prior to the start of the formal sale process and we expect they will be incorporated in the contractual arrangement between the Department and the buyer.

Pipelines

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expectations he has for the potential level of income which will accrue from the sale of the Government pipeline and storage system.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence expects that the sale of the Government Pipeline and Storage System (GPSS) will result in a capital receipt. I am withholding the information requested as its disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

Reserve Forces: Railways

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what consideration he has given to extending the HM forces rail card to reserve forces;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost of extending the HM forces rail card to reserve forces.

Mark Francois: The HM Forces railcard is a concession granted by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC). Eligibility for these railcards is governed by a contract between the Train Operating Companies (TOCs) and the Ministry of Defence (MOD), and any extension of the eligibility criteria to include Reserve Forces would require the full consent of the TOCs. As a commercial organisation, ATOC has to carefully consider the financial implications of issues such as ticket pricing and railcards. While it would not be appropriate to comment in detail on these commercial aspects, we understand that ATOC consider its current product range, including a variety of railcard products and advance tickets, with reduced fares, to represent a fair and appropriate balance overall.
	MOD incurs no direct costs from the HM Forces railcard concession and therefore no estimate has been made of the costs associated with an extension to include Reserve Forces.

Ultra Electronics

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many items of correspondence have been sent between his Department and representatives of Ultra Electronics Holdings plc in the last two years;
	(2)  what meetings (a) Ministers, (b) officials and (c) special advisers of his Department have had with Mr Douglas Caster, Chairman of Ultra Electronics Holdings plc, since May 2010.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence currently has 44 contracts with Ultra Electronics Holdings plc. Officials regularly correspond with representatives of the company on a wide range of issues. Records of correspondence are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Ministers meet defence contractors to discuss a wide range of issues. Details of all ministerial meetings with external organisations, including companies, are published in the Ministry of Defence Transparency returns. Information can be found at the following address:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministers-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings
	Since May 2010, there have been three meetings between Ministers and Ultra Electronics; these are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Date Minister Purpose of meeting 
			 July 2010 Gerald Howarth MP Introductory meeting 
			 November 2010 Peter Luff MP Introductory meeting 
			 October 2012 Philip Dunne MP Introductory meeting 
		
	
	In addition I have met representatives of Ultra Electronics at defence exhibitions in Bangalore (India) and in Abu Dhabi in February 2013.
	There have been no meetings between special advisers and Mr Douglas Caster since May 2010. Information about meetings that officials have had with Mr Caster since May 2010 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Veterans

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place a copy of his letter of 25 February 2013 sent to the Shadow Secretary of State and Shadow Minister for the Armed Forces on access by senior retired officers to his Department in the Library.

Philip Dunne: No. It is normal practice for follow-up letters to parliamentary questions to be published in the Official Report. I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 26 February 2013, Official Report, columns 416-21W.

Veterans: Homelessness

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the number of homeless veterans in (a) Brigg and Goole constituency and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence does not collect specific data on the prevalence of homelessness among veterans. Responsibility for housing ex-service personnel, and the issue of homelessness, lies with the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
	However, we work closely with DCLG, the devolved Administrations, ex-service organisations, service-providers and charities to seek to ensure a co-ordinated and structured approach to the issue of housing former members of our armed forces.

Weapons Operational Centre

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what overtime costs have been incurred by the Weapons Operational Centre in each month since April 2011.

Philip Dunne: holding answer 11 March 2013
	The overtime costs for the Defence Equipment and Support Weapons Operating Centre in each month from April 2011 until January 2013 are shown in the following table. Figures for February 2013 are not yet available.
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2011:  
			 April 0.05 
			 May 0.12 
			 June 0.15 
			 July 0.19 
			 August 0.13 
		
	
	
		
			 September 0.18 
			 October 0.16 
			 November 0.20 
			 December 0.22 
			 2012:  
			 January 0.16 
			 February 0.24 
			 March 0.27 
			 April 0.16 
			 May 0.15 
			 June 0.17 
			 July 0.17 
			 August 0.20 
			 September 0.16 
			 October 0.18 
			 November 0.23 
			 December 0.14 
			 2013:  
			 January 0.19

Wind Power: Planning Permission

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes he has made to his policy on objections to onshore wind turbine planning applications in the last year.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence continues to assess every planning application on a case by case basis and on its own merits.

CABINET OFFICE

Business: Kent

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many small and medium-sized businesses were operating in (a) Gillingham and Rainham constituency, (b) Medway and (c) Kent in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated March 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many small and medium-sized businesses were operating in (a) Gillingham and Rainham constituency (b) Medway and (c) Kent in each of the last five years.
	Annual statistics on the number of businesses (enterprises) are available from the ONS release - UK Business: Activity, Size and Location at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/bus-register/uk-business/index.html
	Data on the number of enterprises broken down by districts, counties and unitary authorities within region and country by employment size band can be found in table B1.2 of the publication and data broken down by constituencies can be found in table B6.2.
	The following table contains the count of small and medium-sized businesses that were operating in the Gillingham and Rainham Constituency, Medway Unitary Authority and Kent County from 2008 to 2012. Small businesses have been defined as those with an employment between 0 and 49 and medium-sized businesses as those with an employment between 50 and 249.
	
		
			  2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			  Small Medium Small Medium Small Medium Small Medium Small Medium 
			 Gillingham and Rainham 2,155 25 2,120 30 1,935 20 1,905 30 2,000 30 
			 Medway UA 6,380 75 6,285 80 6,135 80 6,020 100 6,305 100 
			 Kent County 50,360 705 49,800 725 48,920 730 48,375 735 49,675 780 
			 Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to protect confidentiality. 2. These numbers do not include very small businesses, typically those below the threshold for VAT and PAYE.

Employment: Gillingham

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of people were employed in (a) the public sector, (b) the private sector and (c) third sector organisations in Gillingham and Rainham constituency in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson dated March 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking, what proportion of people were employed in (a) public sector, (b) private sector and (c) third sector organisations in Gillingham and Rainham constituency in each of the last five years for which figures are available. (147214)
	Employment statistics for local areas are calculated from the Annual Population Survey (APS). Estimates of people employed in the third sector are currently not available from APS. Individuals employed in voluntary organisations, charities and trusts are included in private sector estimates.
	Individuals in the APS are classified to the public or private sector according to their responses to the survey. In the APS the distinction between public and private sector is based on respondents' views about the organisation for which they work. The public sector estimates provided do not correspond to official Public Sector Employment estimates. Those are derived directly from employers and are based on a National Accounts' definition and are not available for areas smaller than regions.
	The tables show the number and percentage of people aged 16 to 64 years, who were employed in the public or private sector along with those who were unemployed or inactive, resident in Gillingham and Rainham constituency. These estimates are compiled from APS interviews held during the period October 2011 to September 2012, the latest period available, and the 12 month periods ending in December from 2008 to 2011. It should also be noted that the estimates also include people who were employed but have not provided enough information to be accurately included in either the public or private sectors.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. A guide to the quality of the estimates is given in the table.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			 Table 1: Percentage of people aged 16 to 64 years employed in the public and private sectors(1), resident in Gillingham and Rainham constituency 
			 Percentage 
			  Employed  
			 12 months ending: Public Private Unknown(2) Unemployed or inactive 
			 December 2008 14.6 56.2 (3)— 28.7 
			 December 2009 19.6 50.1 (3)— 29.5 
			 December 2010 13.8 54.8 (3)— 30.5 
			 December 2011 16.2 52.9 (3)— 30.2 
			 September 2012 19.1 52.1 (3)— 28.1 
			 (1) Individuals in the APS are classified to the public or private sector according to their responses to the survey. (2) People who were employed but have not provided enough information to be accurately included in either the public or private sectors. (3) Not available. Note: Components may not add to 100% due to rounding and suppression of unavailable estimates. Source: Annual Population Survey

Jimmy Savile

Tom Watson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of the Prime Minister of 23 October 2012, Official Report, column 756W, on Jimmy Savile, if the Government will set aside the practice of not commenting on individual honours cases with respect to Jimmy Savile.

Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Prime Minister on 23 October 2012, Official Report, column 756W. There are no plans to review the practice of not commenting on individual honours cases.

Social Incubator Fund

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2013, Official Report, column 821W, on the Social Incubator Fund, what the defined plans of (a) Wayra and UnLtd and (b) Bethnal Green Ventures to reach beyond London are.

Nick Hurd: Both ventures will actively work with local partners to recruit social ventures from across England and use online publicity and social media.
	Wayra and UnLtd have committed to working with delivery partners who have reach beyond London. They will focus on building up a network of referral partners across England; and deliver a regional road-show each year—targeting major cities throughout England.
	Bethnal Green Ventures have committed to linking with local organisations and networks, and engage with local communities. They will provide travel grants for selected teams to travel for interviews and aim to run two or three workshops a week across England, during their Call for Ventures.
	Further incubators are due to be announced shortly.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to ensure the Afghan Government remain committed to equal rights for males and females.

Alistair Burt: Afghanistan's Constitution makes clear that men and women have equal rights. The Afghan Government made a series of public commitments at the Tokyo Conference in July 2012, including to ensure the human rights of all Afghan citizens, including women, are promoted and protected as enshrined in their constitution. We, along with our international partners, will hold the Afghan Government to account for the commitments they have made and to implement the human rights obligations that it has committed to, including implementation of the Law on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
	We regularly raise respect for women's rights and the protection of women's security with the Afghan Government. Women's rights were a key priority during the visit to Afghanistan on 4-6 March this year by the Senior Minister of State, my noble and right hon. Friend the Baroness Warsi. She met Government and civil society representatives to discuss women's issues and raised this issue with the Afghanistan Foreign Minister.

British Indian Ocean Territory

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 5 March 2013, Official Report, column 904W, on Chagos Islands, when the taking stock process is expected to be complete; and when he anticipates he will be able to make a statement.

Mark Simmonds: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 6 March 2013, Official Report, column 1018W.

British Indian Ocean Territory

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 5 March 2013, Official Report, column 904W, on Chagos Islands, what he has identified as the fundamental difficulties with resettlement; and if he will discuss those matters with interested stakeholder groups and the Chagos Islands All-Party Parliamentary Group.

Mark Simmonds: The fundamental difficulties are numerous. Any long-term settlement would be precarious and very costly. The outer islands, which have been uninhabited for 40 years, are low-lying and lack all basic facilities and infrastructure. The cost of infrastructure and public services could become a heavy ongoing contingent liability for the UK tax-payer. There are also defence considerations.
	As we have made clear in various PQs this year we will be positive in our engagement with all interested stakeholders.

Burma

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which projects are being funded or otherwise supported by his Department in relation to capacity building for the government of Burma.

Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not currently fund directly any projects which build the capacity of the Government of Burma. Our embassy in Rangoon funds a number of projects through its bilateral programme budget. Two of these projects provided funding to non-governmental organisations to support Burma's peace process, and included capacity-building elements to Government, opposition, civil society and ethnic groups by sharing experiences of peace processes.
	The majority of the projects funded by our bilateral programme budget aim to build the capacity of civil society groups in areas such as human rights, peace processes, interfaith dialogue, advocacy for disability rights, revenue transparency and responsible investment, labour rights and conservation.
	The British Government, through the Department of International Development, have made the largest bilateral commitment of aid to Burma—allocating £187 million for development from 2011-15. This includes capacity-building support to Government and non-government institutions through trusted expert organisations to support reform in Burma. This capacity-building also includes support to Burma's Parliament; for example, the visit of three Burmese MPs to the UK in December 2012 to learn about parliamentary process and legislative drafting.

Burma

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the links between elected officials in the Burmese national and regional parliaments and the illegal drugs trade in that country.

Hugo Swire: We are aware of media and non-governmental organisation reports which have linked elected officials in the Burmese national and regional parliaments and the illegal drugs trade.
	The illegal drugs trade in Burma is of serious concern. The British Government are actively looking for opportunities to engage with Burmese law enforcement authorities to tackle the trade of illicit drugs in Burma.

Capital Punishment

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment has he made of the number of countries that use the death penalty for offences committed by minors; and what discussions has he had with his international counterparts on the abolition of the death penalty.

David Lidington: The execution of minors is expressly forbidden by Article 6 of the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, which is accepted by the vast majority of states. We expect all states to refrain from the execution of minors.
	It is difficult to obtain reliable information about the execution of minors. However, Amnesty International states in its most recent report that in 2011 there may have been seven executions in Iran, individuals who were minors at the time of the crimes for which they were convicted, as well as one in Saudi Arabia. Civil society groups have raised further possible cases in Saudi Arabia and Yemen in 2012. While we cannot verify the details of any of these, we have intervened bilaterally with the authorities of Saudi Arabia in one recent case, and through the EU in a recent case in Yemen.
	We regularly discuss abolition of the death penalty with a wide range of international counterparts, bilaterally, through the EU and through multilateral bodies such as the UN.

India

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Government of India regarding the execution of Balwant Singh Rajoana.

Hugo Swire: During my recent visit to India as part of the Prime Minister's delegation, I raised the British Government's concerns about the death penalty with India's Foreign Secretary, Ranjan Mathai, on 19 February. The British Government will continue to make its position clear to the Indian Government on this issue.
	I refer the hon. Member to the debate on the 'Death Penalty (India)' on 28 February 2013, Official Report, columns 492-529.
	I also refer the hon. Member to my answer to the right hon. Member for Warley (Mr Spellar) of 25 February 2013, Official Report, column 324W.

Maldives

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in the Maldives and the arrest of former President Nasheed.

Alistair Burt: The Government have ongoing concerns about human rights issues in Maldives, including on freedom of religion, rule of law, and women's rights. We are also concerned about allegations of police brutality, physical and political intimidation of parliamentarians, and arrests which appear to be politically motivated. Officials at our high commission in Colombo, which is also accredited to Maldives, regularly discuss our concerns with the Maldivian Government. During my visit to Maldives last month, I raised with the Maldivian Government the importance of fully investigating all allegations of police brutality, and ensuring that perpetrators are held accountable.
	We will continue to encourage the Maldivian Government to comply with their obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law, and to take the necessary measures to protect individuals, Our high commissioner to Maldives will continue to raise these concerns in his regular dialogue with the Maldivian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
	The British Government are watching events closely following the recent arrest and detention of former President Nasheed in Maldives. Immediately after the arrest the UK high commissioner made urgent representations to the Maldivian Government, calling on them to ensure due process was followed, and that proceedings were fair and transparent. The former President has now been released following his hearing, and we understand that his trial has been postponed for four weeks. We urge all parties to remain calm and to act responsibly. We have made it clear to the Maldivian authorities that no harm must be orientated towards the former President.

Saudi Arabia

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Saudi Arabia Government in support of the rule of law and the abolition of the death penalty in that country.

Alistair Burt: Ministers and officials frequently raise the issue of the death penalty with the Saudi authorities, bilaterally and through the European Union. I publicly set out the Government's strong opposition to use of the death penalty in a statement in January 2013 on the execution in Saudi Arabia of Rizana Nafeek:
	“The UK opposes all use of the death penalty as a matter of principle, whatever the crime committed. The beheading of Ms Nafeek is particularly concerning as reports suggest she may have been a child of 17 at the time the crime was committed. We also find the practice of beheading to be particularly cruel and inhuman. We continue to raise our concerns about human rights with the Saudi authorities, including its frequent use of the death penalty.”

Sri Lanka

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department about human rights in Sri Lanka and the safety of any Tamils returned to that country.

Alistair Burt: 1 have discussed human rights in Sri Lanka and the return of individuals with the Home Office on a number of occasions in recent weeks. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office shares assessments of, and reporting on, human rights in Sri Lanka with the Home Office on a regular basis. This material, taken together with reporting from non-governmental organisations (NGOs), international organisations, and other governments, is used to assess the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, and is taken into consideration by the UK Border Agency when making asylum decisions.

UK Membership of EU

Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to which treaties and conventions the UK is a party solely by virtue of its membership of the EU.

David Lidington: The UK is bound, as a matter of EU law, by treaties and conventions by virtue of its membership of the EU where such agreements are concluded on behalf of the EU only. The decision on whether the EU should become a party to such agreements is taken by the Council. Details of EU-only agreements are available on the website of the Council of the European Union at:
	http://www.consilium.europa.eu/policies/agreements/search-the-agreements-database?lang=en

Yemen

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Yemeni Government on juvenile offenders sentenced to the death penalty in that country.

Alistair Burt: I am deeply concerned by reports of the use of the death penalty against juveniles in Yemen, and in particular was appalled to hear of the execution of the alleged juvenile Hind al-Barti on 3 December. Our ambassador to Yemen has lobbied the Yemeni Government at the highest levels on this issue, most recently in February. Together with the EU we continue to urge the Yemeni Government to honour its obligations under international treaties and immediately cease the execution of juveniles in Yemen.
	The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs raised the UK's concerns about the use of the death penalty in Yemen with Dr al-Qirbi, the Yemeni Foreign Minister, on 7 March.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Billing

Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to encourage clinical commissioning groups and local authorities to sign up to the prompt payment code.

Michael Fallon: BIS is working with central Government Departments to encourage all public authorities that have not yet done so to sign up to the prompt payment code, to ensure that public authorities are aware of late payment legislation that sets out an obligation for the public sector to pay suppliers within 30-days or pay mandatory interest, and to share knowledge of best practice in procurement.

Business: Finance

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2012, Official Report, column 725W, on business finance, if he will provide a breakdown of the number of advisers available under the Business Finance Adviser Scheme in each region.

Michael Fallon: The Business Finance Advisor scheme is welcomed by Government as an industry-led scheme, jointly organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland (ICAS) and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). Government do not hold details of individual members. However, as of March 2013 there are over 1,900 offices participating in the scheme.

Copyright

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with representatives of small and medium-sized businesses in the creative sector on potential increases in the regulatory burden following the implementation of the modernising copyright proposals; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: Ministers in this Department have regular meetings with representatives of small and medium-sized enterprises, in which the subject of regulation comes up frequently. The Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my noble Friend Viscount Younger of Leckie, and his predecessors, regularly meet groups interested in the impact of implementing Modernising Copyright. These groups will include people who represent or are themselves small businesses in the creative sector.

Data Strategy Board

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills who sits on the Department's Data Strategy Board; and what their level of remuneration is.

Matthew Hancock: The current members of the Data Strategy Board (DSB) are:
	Chair: Stephan Shakespeare: CEO and Co-founder of YouGov
	Nick Baldwin: Chair, Public Weather Service Customer Group
	Professor Sir John Beddington: Government Chief Scientific Adviser
	Michael Coughlin: Executive Director, Local Government Association
	John Dodds: Director of Innovation, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	Sir Ian Magee: Chair, Geographic Information Customer Group
	Heather Savory: Chair, Government's Open Data User Group
	Steve Thomas: MD Strategic Development, Experian plc
	Bill Roberts: CEO, Swirrl IT Ltd
	Chris Yiu: Head of Digital Government Unit, Policy Exchange
	Professor Mark McGurk: Head of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, GKT Dental Institute
	The only member to receive any remuneration for the DSB role is the Chair, who receives an honorarium of £26,304 per annum.
	All DSB members are entitled to reclaim any reasonable expenses, including travel, subsistence and other expenses, properly and necessarily incurred in respect of their appointment.

EU Grants and Loans

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the European Council negotiations on the EU's Multi-Annual Financial Framework, how much the UK will receive in economic, social and territorial cohesion funding for Transition Regions; and how much such funding will be allocated to each of the UK's 11 Transition Regions.

Michael Fallon: The Government will be in a position to set out how much total funding is available for transition regions only after there is a final agreement between the European Parliament and member states on the 2014-20 EU budget. No decision has been made on what criteria will be used within the UK.

Exports

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the Bank of England's Inflation Report February 2013, pages 24 and 25, if he will take steps to address the disappointing export performance referred to in that report; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: This Government recognise that trade is essential if we are to achieve sustainable, balanced growth in the UK economy. The Government's strategy for trade and investment is set out in Trade and Investment for Growth White Paper, published in February 2011. The National Export Challenge, launched in November 2011, set an ambitious target to get an extra 100,000 companies exporting by 2020. Towards this, funding has increased to UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) to enable it to double the number of small and medium-sized firms it supports, to 50,000 by 2015. Our industrial strategy sets out a long-term approach to supporting business, including building export capacity in key sectors of the economy.
	Economic research has consistently shown that productivity is the primary driver of export performance. BIS has a comprehensive policy agenda to support UK business in driving up UK productivity. Key strands include support for innovation through the Technology Strategy Board and support through UKTI to help individual UK businesses and sectors overcome barriers to exporting and entering new markets.
	The Government are also encouraging ambitious trade negotiations. Deep and comprehensive trade agreements will significantly increase the opportunities for UK exporters. The EU Commission has estimated that extra-EU exports could grow by around 6% as a result of the EU's ongoing and potential free trade agreements.

Fossil Fuels: Reserves

Tom Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has the power to enforce an obligation for companies to disclose data on fossil fuel reserves under the provisions of the Companies Act 2006.

Jo Swinson: The Companies Act 2006 provides powers for the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to determine what information companies must disclose in their directors' report. There is no obligation for companies to disclose data on fossil fuel reserves.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Business

Tom Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department's proposed regulations on greenhouse gas reporting will contain powers to require disclosure under the provisions of the Companies Act 2006.

Jo Swinson: The Government will shortly be introducing regulations that amend the Companies Act 2006 to make changes to the narrative reporting framework, including a requirement that quoted companies disclose their greenhouse gas emissions.

Nuclear Power

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Green Construction Board on the need for research into the extent to which investment in new nuclear power plants, along with associated ancillary uranium nuclear fuel cycle production plants, abroad at the front-end of the fuel production cycle and within the UK in operation and at the back-end, meet the Government's low-carbon and sustainability agendas.

Michael Fallon: It is not part of the remit of the Green Construction Board to consider matters relating to investment in new nuclear plants, and no such discussions have taken place.

Open Data Institute

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding the Technology Strategy Board has provided to the Open Data Institute.

Matthew Hancock: Since May 2012, the Technology Strategy Board has provided £1.2 million to the Open Data Institute. The Technology Strategy Board is due to provide £10 million to the Open Data Institute over a five-year period from 2012/13.

Regional Growth Fund

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what processes and safeguards he will put in place for benchmarking awards under the Exceptional Regional Growth Fund against similar bids from previous rounds of the Regional Growth Fund (RGF); and whether this decision will be made by Ministers or the RGF Independent Advisory Panel.

Michael Fallon: As with an open round of the Regional Growth Fund (RGF), applications for exceptional support will be appraised in line with the bidding guidance set out in the HMT Green Book:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/data_greenbook_index.htm
	This appraisal will look at the value for money case for RGF support and the fit with RGF objectives. The appraisal will allow applications for exceptional support to be benchmarked against previous bids to the RGF.
	The economic appraisal and the benchmarking information will be available to both my noble Friends Lord Heseltine and Lord Shipley, acting on behalf of the Independent Advisory Panel, and to Ministers to inform the decisions they make.

Regional Growth Fund: Merseyside

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 28 February 2013, Official Report, column 641W, on Regional Growth Fund: Merseyside, which projects and programmes have received funding from the Regional Growth Fund; and how much each such project and programme has received.

Michael Fallon: The following Round 1 and Round 2 projects and programmes in Merseyside have received finalised awards:
	
		
			  £ 
			 Crown Speciality Packaging UK Ltd 1,030,000 
			 Dairy Crest Ltd 5,265,000 
			 Eldonians (Liverpool City Council) 25,335,000 
			 Getrag Ford Transmissions 3,360,000 
			 Harpscreen and QuarryTech 1,097,750 
			 Liverpool City Council (Housing) 6,468,715 
			 Liverpool Council and Liverpool Echo 1,000,000 
			 North West Aerospace Alliance 4,422,257 
			 Pilkington Coatings 5,000,000 
			 Redx Pharma Ltd 5,920,000 
			 Sefton Council (Mersey Docks) 35,000,000 
			 Unilever UK 2,830,000 
		
	
	The Department will provide details of Round 3 and 4 projects when the awards are finalised.
	In aggregate, these projects have drawn down a total of £43,455,162. The Department is not able to provide details of the draw down for individual projects as the disclosure of this information may prejudice the commercial interests of some beneficiaries.

Seeds: Patents

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what meetings, discussions and correspondence his Department has had with the World Trade Organisation regarding patented seeds since June 2010.

Jo Swinson: The only UK engagement in this area with the WTO is via our participation in the World Trade Organisation's Council on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), at which the topic of intellectual property and biodiversity features regularly on the agenda. This covers plant varieties as part of the ongoing review of Article 27.3(b) of the TRIPS Agreement, which provides for the protection of plant varieties either by patents or by a “sui generis” system. Further details are available online at:
	http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/art27_3b_background_e.htm

HEALTH

Bowel Cancer

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many applications were (a) received, (b) approved and (c) rejected through the Cancer Drugs Fund for bowel cancer treatments in (i) England and (ii) each strategic health authority for (A) October 2010 to March 2011, (B) April 2011 to March 2012 and (C) April 2012 to December 2012.

Norman Lamb: A number of the drugs funded through the cancer drugs funding arrangements for 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13 are used in the treatment of bowel cancer. However, the Department does not collect information on the specific indications for which drugs have been funded and some of these drugs may be used in the treatment of a number of cancers. Neither is information collected on the number of applications or applications that are turned down.

Cancer

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the new national clinical director for cancer will be appointed.

Anna Soubry: It is anticipated that the NHS Commissioning Board will announce the appointment of a new national clinical director for cancer before the end of March 2013.

Care Homes: Yorkshire and the Humber

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many permanent admissions to residential and nursing care homes there were of people over 65 years in (a) Brigg and Goole constituency and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many permanent admissions to residential and nursing care homes there were of people between 18 and 65 years in (a) Brigg and Goole constituency and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: Data on the number of adults—aged 18 to 64—and older people—aged 65 or over—permanently admitted to local authority-arranged residential and nursing care are collected and published by the NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre.
	Data for Brigg and Goole constituency are not available separately. The Information Centre has provided data for the North Lincolnshire and East Riding of Yorkshire local authorities, which include Brigg and Goole constituency, and the Yorkshire and Humber region. This information is shown in the tables.
	Information on admissions to privately funded and arranged residential and nursing care is not collected centrally.
	
		
			 Admissions to residential care 
			 Area Year Age 18 to 64 Age 65 and over 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire local authority 2007-08 25 475 
			  2008-09 30 265 
			  2009-10 45 540 
			  2010-11 25 490 
			  2011-12 25 505 
			     
			 North Lincolnshire local authority 2007-08 15 225 
			  2008-09 10 235 . 
			  2009-10 10 235 
			  2010-11 15 200 
		
	
	
		
			  2011-12 10 190 
			     
			 Yorkshire and Humber region 2007-08 360 4,550 
			  2008-09 375 4,725 
			  2009-10 315 4,805 
			  2010-11 380 4,505 
			  2011-12 355 4,570 
		
	
	
		
			 Admissions to nursing care 
			 Area Year Age 18 to 64 Age 65 and over 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire local authority 2007-08 5 70 
			  2008-09 5 110 
			  2009-10 0 50 
			  2010-11 5 55 
			  2011-12 0 35 
			     
			 North Lincolnshire local authority 2007-08 5 40 
			  2008-09 5 60 
			  2009-10 5 25 
			  2010-11 0 20 
			  2011-12 5 15 
			     
			 Yorkshire and Humber region 2007-08 145 2,035 
			  2008-09 105 1,835 
			  2009-10 105 1,430 
			  2010-11 105 1,445 
			  2011-12 115 1,355 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five. 2. Figures include admissions to local authority operated and independent sector homes. 3. Yorkshire and Humber region includes other local authorities in addition to East Riding of Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.

Thromboembolism

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much NICE-approved rivaroxaban for the treatment of deep vein thrombosis and prevention of recurrent deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism has been prescribed in each primary care trust area in each of the last three years.

Norman Lamb: Information has been placed in the Library.
	A table is provided for each of the last available three financial years 2009-10 through to 2011-12, together with April to September 2012, giving the total number of prescription items dispensed in the community, in England, by primary care trust, for rivaroxaban. The net ingredient cost of these dispensed prescription items is provided in a further table.
	Prescription data do not include the indication for which the medicine has been given. It is therefore not possible to separate out any prescribing for rivaroxaban for the treatment of deep vein thrombosis and prevention of recurrent deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism from any other use such as prevention of stroke and systemic embolism.
	In terms of cost, the main usage of rivaroxaban is in secondary care. In the calendar year 2011 the estimated cost in hospitals in England was £3.4 million. This figure is taken from the Hospital Prescribing 2011 report published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Thromboembolism

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what policy instruments he has at his disposal to ensure compliance of healthcare providers with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidance on prescribing of rivaroxaban for the treatment of deep vein thrombosis and the prevention of recurrent deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism; and whether he has any plans to use them.

Norman Lamb: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's (NICE) technology appraisal guidance, published in July 2012, recommends rivaroxaban as an option for treating deep vein thrombosis and preventing recurrent deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism after a diagnosis of acute deep vein thrombosis in adults.
	Primary care trusts are legally obliged to fund drugs and treatments recommended in NICE technology appraisal guidance, within three months of guidance being published, unless the requirement is waived in a specific case.
	The NHS chief executive's report, “Innovation Health and Wealth”, committed the NHS to establishing a compliance regime to promote rapid and consistent implementation of NICE technology appraisal guidance.
	As “Creating Change: Innovation Health and Wealth one year on” sets out, this compliance regime is already reducing variation.

Dementia: Yorkshire and the Humber

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to raise awareness of the early signs of dementia in (a) Brigg and Goole constituency and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber.

Norman Lamb: The 2012 dementia campaign, which ran from September 2012 to January 2013, consisted of national television, radio, press and digital advertising supported by public relations. Its objective was to raise awareness of the signs of dementia and encourage people to visit their doctor if they are concerned about their memory.

General Practitioners: Lancashire

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were removed from each GP practice list in Lancashire in 2012.

Daniel Poulter: The information requested is not held by the Department. The hon. Member may wish to approach the local national health service directly.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department intends to publish its sexual health policy document.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department intends to publish its Sexual Health Policy document.

Anna Soubry: The sexual health policy document will be published as soon as possible.

Health Services: Watford

Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department allocated to the Watford Health Campus between May 1997 and May 2010.

Daniel Poulter: The Department allocated £37 million to the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust for the development of an acute admissions unit on the Watford Health Campus between 2007-08 and 2008-09. The Department allocated a further £7 million to the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust in 2011-12 for the development of an access road to the Watford Health Campus.

Horsemeat

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which company supplied Sodexo with the meat which tested positive for horse DNA.

Anna Soubry: The Food Standards Agency advises that due to ongoing investigations, which may lead to legal proceedings, the FSA is unable to release further details at this time about the company that supplied Sodexo with the meat that tested positive for horse DNA.

Medicine: Research

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Strategy for UK Life Sciences, for what reason his Department has not brought forward consultation proposals for a new early access scheme to increase the speed and efficiency of routes to market for innovative therapies; and when he expects to bring forward such a consultation.

Norman Lamb: In line with the commitments made in the Strategy for UK Life Sciences, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency launched, in July 2012, a public consultation on the feasibility and desirability of introducing an “early access” scheme in the United Kingdom to make certain new and promising medicines available to patients before they are formally licensed.
	The consultation closed in October 2012 and the responses are being assessed. Discussions are continuing across Government following the consultation and the Government expect to make an announcement as soon as these discussions have concluded.

Mental Illness: Employment

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people with mental or psychological health problems who have moved off out of work benefits and into employment in each of the last 10 years.

Mark Hoban: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

NHS: Competition

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to lay the amended regulations in respect of procurement, patient choice and competition under section 75 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

Anna Soubry: The National Health Service (Procurement, Patient Choice and Competition) (No 2) Regulations 2013 were laid in Parliament on 11 March.

NHS: Competition

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Walsall South of 5 March 2013, Official Report, column 844, which Minister considered the original section 75 regulations and subsequently signed them off for submission to Parliament.

Anna Soubry: The National Health Service (Procurement, Patient Choice and Competition) Regulations 2013 were approved by my noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Earl Howe). Alongside this to assist interpretation, my noble Friend arranged for the publication of a detailed explanatory note in addition to the explanatory memorandum.

NHS: Finance

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health under what circumstances payments made from the NHS budget as a result of judicial mediation require (a) his approval and (b) the approval of the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Daniel Poulter: Approval has not hitherto been required by the Chancellor of the Exchequer or the Secretary of State for Health for special severance payments made as a result of judicial mediation. However, as of 11 March 2013 approval will be required by both the Department of Health and HM Treasury for special severance payments made as a result of judicial mediation.

NHS: Staff

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) registered nurses and (b) healthcare assistants were employed in the NHS in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Daniel Poulter: The numbers of qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff and healthcare assistants employed in the national health service from 2007 to 2011 are shown in the following table:
	Qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff are registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
	Healthcare assistants care for patients, working under the supervision of nurses; midwives and other health professionals. There are other support staff who work with doctors and nursing staff, including nursing auxiliaries and support workers.
	
		
			 NHS hospital and community staff: Qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff by area of work—England as at 30 September each year 
			 Full-time equivalent 
			  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 Total qualified nursing staff 308,516 313,879 320,469 322,306 319,919 
			 Qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff 293,962 299,917 306,887 309,139 306,346 
			 General practice nurses(1) 14,554 13,962 13,582 13,167 13,573 
			 (1) Practice staff counts for 2011 represents an improvement in data collection processes and comparisons with previous years should be treated with caution. Note: Totals may not equal the sum of component parts due to rounding and the inclusion of unclassifiable staff. In 2011 the bank staff return was ceased. All data (for all years) in these tables excludes bank staff. Source: 2012 Health and Social Care Information Centre. 
		
	
	
		
			 Healthcare assistants—England at 30 September each year 
			 Full-time equivalent 
			  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 All healthcare assistants 36,260 39,851 44,212 45,015 46,574 
			 Support to ambulance service 901 781 866 887 891 
			 Support to doctors and nursing staff 34,532 38,221 42,331 43,212 44,787 
			 Of which:      
			 Acute elderly and general 23,403 26,410 28,836 29,751 31,055 
			 Paediatric nursing 1,043 1,181 1,295 1,512 1,508 
			 Maternity services 2,062 2,312 2,458 2,746 2,916 
			 Other psychiatry 3,105 2,935 3,072 2,594 3,006 
			 Other learning disabilities 2,830 2,687 2,641 2,288 2,027 
			 Community services 1,930 2,565 3,912 4,210 4,185 
			 Central functions 159 131 117 111 91 
			 Support to allied health professionals 461 513 582 561 506 
		
	
	
		
			 Of which:      
			 Chiropody 29 25 20 17 15 
			 Occupational therapy 135 158 187 130 89 
			 Physiotherapy 131 139 156 143 123 
			 Radiography (diagnostic) 148 166 184 230 224 
			 Speech and language therapy 18 25 35 41 56 
			 Support to Healthcare Scientists 45 22 21 16 20 
			 Support to other Scientific, Technical and Therapeutic staff 120 143 175 134 171 
			 Hotel, property and estates 200 171 236 205 199 
			 Note: Sum of figures may not equal totals due to rounding. Source: The Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Olaseni Lewis

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department or the agencies for which he is responsible have held or intend to hold an investigation into the death of Olaseni Lewis in September 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: In September 2012, the Metropolitan Police commissioned an independent review into how it responds to people with mental health conditions. Under the chairmanship of Lord Adebowale, the review has examined every case during the last five years where someone with a mental health condition has either died or been seriously injured after police contact.
	In addition, under Regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) the hospital must notify the Care Quality Commission (CQC) of the death of any patient detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. The CQC will determine any further action by CQC, having reviewed the case.

Phenylbutazone

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 11 February 2013, Official Report, columns 523-4W, on horses: slaughterhouses, on what date (a) the positive phenylbutazone samples were collected, (b) those samples were passed to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, (c) the Veterinary Medicines Directorate confirmed the positive test result, (d) the positive test results were reported to the Food Standards Agency (FSA), (e) the FSA issued a recall on the positive meat and (f) the EC Rapid Alert system for Feed and Food team were alerted of the positive test results.

Anna Soubry: Details are provided in the following table:
	
		
			 Establishment where sample was collected Estab. No. Year Date positive phenylbutazone samples were collected Date samples passed to Veterinary Medicines Directorate (tested by either Laboratory Government Chemist (LGC) or Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera) Date Fera/LGC confirmed positive test result to Veterinary Medicines Directorate Date when positive sample reported to the Food Standards Agency FSA issued a recall on the positive meat EC Rapid Alert system for Feed and Food team were alerted of the positive test results 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2010 24 February 2010 2 March 2010 16 April 2010 20 April 2010 21 April 2010 RASFF submitted to the EC on 21 April 2010-Carcase distributed to France. RASFF 2010.0496 issued by the EC on 22 April 2010 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231- 2010 24 February 2010 2 March 2010 16 April 2010 20 April 2010 21 April 2010 RASFF submitted to the EC on 21 April 2010—Carcase distributed to France. RASFF 2010.0496 issued by the EC on 22 April 2010 
		
	
	
		
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2010 21 April 2010 27 April 2010 24 June 2010 28 June 2010 2 July 2010 RASFF submitted to the EC on 2 July 2010—Carcase distributed to France. RASFF 2010.0889 issued by the EC on 2 July 2010 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2010 14 April 2010 20 April 2010 3 June 2010 7 June 2010 14 June 2010 RASFF submitted to the EC 14 June 2010—RASFF 2010.0779 issued by the EC on 15 June 2010 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2010 19 May 2010 25 May 2010 9 September 2010 22 September 2010 7 October 2010 RASFF submitted to the EC on 7 October 2010—Carcase distributed to France. RASFF 2010.1366 issued by the EC on 8 October 2010 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2011 8 June 2011 14 June 2011 29 June 2011 29 June . 2011  FSA has no record of notification, being received. RASFF not issued. 
			 High Peak Meat Exports Ltd 4185 2012 21 May 2012 25 May 2012 27 June 2012 27 June 2012 4 February 2013 RASFF submitted by the UK on 4 February 2013, following a reconciliation exercise with VMD. Distribution to Netherlands. RASFF 2013.0142 issued by the EC on 5 February 2013 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2012 25 April 2012 1 May 2012 30 May 2012 6 June 2012 13 June 2012 Distribution to France. RASFF submitted to the EC on 13 June 2012. RASFF 2012.0810 issued by the EC on 14 June 2012 
		
	
	
		
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2012 18 January 2012 24 January 2012 15 February 2012 15 February 2012 15 March 2012 Distribution to France. RASFF submitted to the EC on 15 March 2012. RASFF 2012.0394 issued by the EC on 15 March 2012. 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2012 21 March 2012 27 March 2012 26 April 12 11 May 2012 15 May 2012 Distribution to France. RASFF submitted to the EC on 15 May 2012. RASFF 2012.0662 issued by the EC on 15 May 2012. 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2012 10 October 2012 16 October 2012 13 November 2012 13 November 2012 4 February 2013 RASFF submitted by the UK on 4 February 2013, following a reconciliation exercise with VMD. Distribution to France. RASFF 2013.0137 issued by the EC on 5 February 2013. 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2012 1 August 2012 7 August 2012 16 August 2012 16 August 2012 29 August 2012 Distribution to France. RASFF submitted to the EC on 29 August 2012. RASFF 2012.1215 issued by the EC on 29 August 2012. 
			 High Peak Meat Exports Ltd 4185 2012 3 August 2012 8 August 2012 22 August 2012 22 August 2012 6 September 2012 Distribution to two farms in UK for their own consumption. No RASFF required. 
			 Stillmans (Somerset) Ltd 8231 2012 8 August 2012 15 August 2012 22 August 2012 22 August 2012 29 August 2012 Distribution to France. RASFF submitted to the EC on 29 August 2012. RASFF 2012.1251 issued by the EC on 29 August 2012. 
		
	
	
		
			 High Peak Meat Exports Ltd 4185 2012 13 September 2012 19 September 2012 27 September 2012 27 September 2012 No recall required Carcase never left the abattoir. It was disposed of as Cat-1 Animal By Product. No RASFF required.

Respiratory System: Diseases

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons respiratory disease was omitted from the NHS Commissioning Board's list of strategic clinical networks.

Anna Soubry: In July 2012 the National Health Service Commissioning Board (NHS CB) published a report entitled “The Way Forward: Strategic Clinical Networks”. This report explained how the NHS CB had come to the decision on the four priority areas it would support through strategic clinical networks, and how these networks would be supported by the NHS CB.
	The NHS CB has made clear that as priorities change, or should the work of one of the initial strategic clinical networks conclude, the board will identify new conditions or patient groups that would benefit from a strategic clinical network approach.

Thromboembolism

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what proportion of people with venous thromboembolic diseases continuing anticoagulation therapy beyond an initial dose had their dose adjusted for weight and renal function in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  what proportion of people with suspected pulmonary embolism are offered anticoagulation therapy if diagnostic investigations take longer than (a) one and (b) four hours to complete from presentation.

Daniel Poulter: Information is not available on the extent of adherence to these elements of Clinical Guideline CG144, published by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

Thromboembolism

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2012, Official Report, column 285W, if he will encourage the NHS Commissioning Board to promote the venous thromboembolism prevention commissioning toolkit currently in development by the National Venous Thromboembolism Prevention Programme to inform clinical commissioning groups on how to ensure best practice in venous thromboembolism prevention.

Daniel Poulter: It will be for the NHS Commissioning Board to determine its priorities for commissioning guidance. We understand that clinical commissioners would welcome a framework for commissioning services that deliver a systematic, high quality approach to venous thromboembolism prevention across the patient pathway in order to drive up standards and improve health outcomes; and that the work in hand on this product is expected to continue.

Warm Homes Healthy People Fund

Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to publicise the Warm Homes Healthy People fund to local authorities.

Anna Soubry: On 11 September 2012, Dr Felicity Harvey, Director General of Public Health, Department of Health, wrote to all ‘upper tier’ local authorities advising them of Ministers’ decision to establish the Warm Homes Healthy People Fund (WHHP) again for this winter 2012-13.
	Local Authority Circular LAC (DH) (2012)2 published on 13 September 2012 invited local authorities to make applications for funding from the fund by 5 October 2012. This was sent to all local authority and NHS chief executives in the Department's publication “the Week” Issue 264, which is the main method for disseminating information to the NHS and local authorities.
	We issued a written ministerial statement on 22 November 2012, Official Report, columns 38-39WS, notifying Parliament of the outcomes of the Warm Homes Healthy People fund bidding process. Subsequently, we sent a letter to all local authorities who bid for funds, notifying them of the outcome of their individual bid. We have published a summary of all the successful proposals from the WHHP fund on the Local Government Association Knowledge Hub website.

JUSTICE

Civil Disorder: Reparation by Offenders

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has undertaken a review of the use of restorative justice used in the sentencing of cases related to the public disturbances of August 2011.

Jeremy Wright: There has been no review of the use of restorative justice in the sentencing of cases related to the public disturbances of August 2011. This is because data on the number of cases relating to the disturbances reported to my Department by courts did not include any information on whether these cases involved any element of restorative justice.
	However, we have published a number of statistical bulletins covering cases relating to the disturbances. These publications provide information on defendants brought before the courts, including initial outcomes, sentencing information, analysis of criminal histories, prison population and socio-economic factors relating to these defendants. The latest publication is available at
	www.justice.gov.uk/statistics/criminal-justice/public-disorder-august-11/public-disorder-august-11-editions

Civil Proceedings: Legal Costs

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure that the implementation in April 2013 of reforms to civil litigation funding and costs does not have serious negative consequences for access to justice.

Helen Grant: The Government are making fundamental changes to civil litigation funding and costs, including ‘no win no fee’ conditional fee agreements. The reforms come into effect on 1 April 2013.
	The reforms form a balanced package, and include a number of measures which will protect claimants' damages. These include a 10% increase in general damages for non-pecuniary loss such as pain, suffering and loss of amenity and, in personal injury cases, the introduction of qualified one way costs shifting—which will provide protection limiting the costs that a losing claimant may have to pay the other side—and a cap on the amount that the lawyer can charge as a success fee.
	It is important for access to justice that costs are more proportionate.

Coroners

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects the inquest to start into the death of Olaseni Lewis; what the reasons are for the delay in starting the inquest; and if he will make a statement.

Helen Grant: The Ministry of Justice has responsibility for coroner law and policy only. It does not have operational responsibility for coroner services. The South London Coroner is solely responsible for the conduct of his investigations and inquests including that into the death of Olaseni Lewis.

Judiciary

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which full-time members of the judiciary have acted as chairperson or member of any public body or inquiry since May 2010; and what role they held in each such case.

Helen Grant: The following table sets out details of those full-time members of the judiciary who have served on either a public body or inquiry held in England and Wales, since May 2010, together with their respective roles. In addition, details of those full-time judges who have been appointed to hear an inquest since May 2010 are also detailed.
	
		
			 Public bodies 
			 Name of public body Judicial office holder 
			 Advisory Committee for Conscientious Objectors HHJ Timothy King—Chair 
			  HHJ Timothy Lawrence—Deputy Chair 
			   
			 Advisory Council of the National Records and Archives Lord Dyson—Chairman (previously Lord Neuberger) 
			   
			 Boundary Commission for England Mr Justice Sales—Deputy Chair 
			   
			 Boundary Commission for Wales Mr Justice Wyn-Williams—Deputy Chair (previously Mr Justice Lloyd Jones) 
			   
			 Central Arbitration Committee Mr Justice Burton 
			   
			 Civil Justice Council Lord Dyson—Chairman (previously Lord Neuberger) 
			  Lord Justice Richards—Vice-Chairman 
			 Members: Lord Justice Stanley Burnton 
			  Mr Justice Foskett 
			  DJ William Jackson 
			  Mr Justice MacDuff 
			  HHJ Graham Jones 
			  DJ Robert Jordan 
			  HHJ David Grant 
			   
			 Civil Procedure Rule Committee Lord Dyson—Chairman (previously Lord Neuberger) 
			  Lord Justice Richards—Vice-Chairman (previously Lord Justice Moore-Bick) 
			 Members: Mr Justice Henderson 
			  Mr Justice Sales 
			  DJ Suzanne Burn 
			  DJ Chris Lethem 
			  Mr Justice Coulson 
			  HHJ Stephen Stewart 
			  DJ Robert Hill 
			  Master Fontaine 
			   
			 Competition Appeals Tribunal Mr Justice Barling 
			   
			 Copyright Tribunal His Honour Judge Birss QC—Chair 
			   
			 Criminal Justice Council Lord Justice Gross—Chair 
			 Members: HHJ Adele Williams 
			  DJ Sonia Sims 
			   
			 Criminal Procedure Rule Committee Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales—Chairman 
			  Lady Justice Rafferty—Deputy Chair 
			 Members: Lord Justice Thomas 
			  HHJ Martin Picton 
			  DJ Stephen Earl 
			  Mr Justice Openshaw 
		
	
	
		
			  HHJ Guggenheim QC 
			 Former Members: Lord Justice Hooper (until 31 August 2012) 
			  HHJ Charles Wide QC (until 31 August 2012) 
			  HHJ Roderick Denyer QC (until 31 August 2011) 
			  DJ Stephen Dawson (until 31 August 2011) 
			   
			 Family Justice Council Lord Justice Munby, President of the Family Division—Chair (previously Lord Justice Wall) 
			  Lord Justice Thorpe—Deputy Chair 
			 Members: Mrs Justice Parker 
			  DJ Rachel Karp 
			  DJ (Magistrates’ Court) Nicholas Crichton 
			   
			 Family Procedure Rule Committee Lord Justice Munby, President of the Family Division—Chair (previously Lord Justice Wall) 
			 Members: Lady Justice Black 
			  Mrs Justice Theis 
			  HHJ Angela Finnerty 
			  Senior DJ Waller CBE 
			  DJ Chris Darbyshire 
			  DJ Paul Carr 
			   
			 Interception of Communications Commissioner Sir Anthony May (previously Sir Paul Kennedy) 
			   
			 Intelligence Services Commissioner Sir Mark Waller 
			   
			 Insolvency Rules Committee Mr Justice Richards—Chairman 
			   
			 Investigatory Powers Tribunal Lord Justice Mummery 
			  Mr Justice Burton 
			   
			 Judicial Appointments Commission Lady Justice Black—Vice-Chairman/Commissioner 
			 Commissioners: Mr Justice Bean 
			  HHJ Taylor 
			  Mr Justice Wilkie 
			  DJ Malcolm Birchall 
			 Former Commissioners: Lady Justice Hallett (until 1 February 2011) 
			  Lord Justice Toulson (until 31 March 2012) 
			   
			 Land Registration Rule Committee Mr Justice Morgan—Member 
			   
			 Law Commission Lord Justice Lloyd Jones—Chair (previously Lord Justice Munby) 
			   
			 Parole Board Sir David Calvert-Smith—Chairman 
			 Members (including retired full-time judges): HHJ Caroline Alton 
			  HHJ Christopher Ball QC 
			  HHJ Bassingthwaighte 
			  HHJ Anthony Bate 
		
	
	
		
			  HHJ John Beashel DL 
			  HHJ Martin Beddoe 
			  HHJ Neil Bidder QC 
			  HHJ Peter Birts QC 
			  HHJ Robert Brown 
			  HHJ David Bryant 
			  HHJ Jeffrey Burke QC 
			  HHJ Collin Burn 
			  HHJ Michael Burr 
			  HHJ Jeremy Carey 
			  HHJ Nick Coleman 
			  HHJ Paul Collins CBE 
			  HHJ Graham Cottle 
			  HHJ Gareth Cowling 
			  HHJ Simon Davis 
			  HHJ Paul Dodgson 
			  HHJ Peter Fingret 
			  HHJ Daniel Flahive 
			  HHJ Paul Focke QC 
			  HHJ Bill Gaskell 
			  HHJ Goldsack QC, DL 
			  HHJ Rodney Grant 
			  HHJ Griffiths-Jones QC 
			  HHJ Guggenheim QC 
			  HHJ Carol Hagen 
			  HHJ Mark Horton 
			  HHJ Macdonald QC 
			  HHJ Kerry Macgill 
			  HHJ G Kamil CBE 
			  HHJ Louise Kamill 
			  HHJ Roger Keen QC 
			  HHJ C Linsay QC 
			  HHJ Shaun Lyons 
			  HHJ Bruce McIntyre 
			  HHJ Metcalf 
			  DJ (MC) Clive Million 
			  HHJ Milmo QC 
			  HHJ Tony Mitchell 
			  HHJ Mole QC 
			  HHJ Molyneux 
			  HHJ Onions 
			  HHJ Richard O'Rourke 
			  HHJ Michael O'Sullivan 
			  HHJ Owen Tudor 
			  HHJ Pardoe QC 
			  HHJ Powles QC 
			  HHJ Philip Richards 
			  HHJ Gordon Risius CB 
			  HHJ Stephen Robbins 
			  HHJ J Roberts QC 
			  HHJ Roberts Mervyn 
			  HHJ P E Robertshaw 
			  HHJ John Rubery 
		
	
	
		
			  HHJ Rumbelow QC 
			  HHJ Francis Sheridan 
			  HHJ Leslie Spittle 
			  HHJ Stephens QC 
			  HHJ Jamie Tabor 
			  HHJ Charles Tilling 
			  HHJ James Wadsworth 
			  HHJ Nicholas Webb 
			  HHJ Graham White 
			  HHJ Wolstenholme 
			  HHJ Worsley QC 
			   
			 Security Vetting Appeals Panel Sir George Newman—Chair 
			  Deputy Chair 
			  Sir David Penry-Davey 
			  Mr Justice Burnett 
			  Mr Justice Silber 
			   
			 Sentencing Council Lord Judge, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales 
			  Lord Justice Leveson—Chairman 
			 Members: Lord Justice Hughes 
			  Mr Justice Globe 
			  DJ Anne Arnold 
			  HHJ William Davis QC 
			  Lord Justice Treacy—(previously Lady Justice Rafferty) 
			  HHJ McCreath QC 
			   
			 Surveillance Commissioners Sir Christopher Rose—Chief Surveillance Commissioner 
			   
			 Surveillance Commissioners: Sir William Gage 
			  Lord Bonomy 
			  Sir Scott Baker 
			  Sir George Newman 
			  Lord Maclean 
			  Sir John Sheil 
			 Assistant Surveillance Commissioners: Dr Colin Kolbert 
			  Sir David Clarke 
			  HH Norman Jones 
			   
			 Tribunal Procedure Committee Mr Justice Langstaff—Chair 
			  Upper Tribunal Judge Douglas May—Member 
			  Upper Tribunal Judge Mark Rowland—Member 
		
	
	
		
			 Inquiry 
			 Inquiry Judicial Office Holder 
			 Inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the press Lord Justice Leveson—Chair 
		
	
	
		
			 Inquests 
			 Inquests Judicial Office Holder 
			 7 July Inquest Lady Justice Hallett 
			 Mark Duggan inquest HHJ Keith Cutler 
			 Hillsborough inquest Lord Justice Goldring

Powers of Attorney

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many disputes arising from enduring power of attorney arrangements reached the courts in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Helen Grant: Under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, the Court of Protection, on an application, can rule on whether an objection to the registration of a currently unregistered enduring power of attorney should be upheld and it can direct the Public Guardian to register or not register the instrument. In 2012 the Court of Protection received 185 applications objecting to the registration of an enduring power of attorney.
	The Court of Protection is also responsible for dealing with a variety of other applications relating to the property and financial affairs of people lacking capacity, including applications relating to how attorneys have exercised their powers and applications to cancel the existing registration of an enduring power of attorney. The court does not record detailed information on these types of applications, where the operation of the enduring power of attorney may be one of a number of issues that the court has to decide.

Sickness Absence

Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many days of paid sickness leave per individual member of staff are authorised in his Department on an annual basis;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to reduce sickness absence in his Department.

Helen Grant: The Ministry of Justice (Ministry of Justice HQ, HM Courts and Tribunals Service, National Offender Management Service and Office of the Public Guardian) does not have a specified number of authorised days that individual members of staff may take as sickness leave.
	Sickness absence is managed on a case by case basis. The sickness absence policies and procedures provide guidance to line managers on when it is appropriate to take formal action. Where there are unacceptable levels of sickness absence, individual members of staff may be dismissed.
	Reducing sickness absence is a strategic workforce priority for the Department. Practical steps are being taken to deliver this, including increased training and support for line managers and support to staff through health and well being programmes. Progress is being made. For example, absence rates in the National Offender Management Service have fallen over recent years.

Supreme Court

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he next expects appointments to be made to the Supreme Court; how many such appointments he expects to be women; what steps he is taking to increase the number of women in the senior judiciary; and what discussions he has had with the President of the Supreme Court on this matter.

Chris Grayling: The next expected appointment to the Supreme Court will be in 2016. It is not possible to predict how many applicants will be women. The Government is taking forward measures in the Crime and Courts Bill to promote diversity, including flexible working and a 'tipping point' provision, which allows for diversity to be taken into account where two applicants are of equal merit. There will be a new statutory duty placed on the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice to encourage judicial diversity. The Lord Chancellor and Lord Neuberger have discussed this and are both committed increasing diversity at the highest levels of our judiciary.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Maintenance

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the reclassification of arrears trial, being run by the Child Maintenance Group in his Department, which began in June 2012; and what criteria are being used (a) to judge whether a case should be classified as inactive and (b) to determine that an arrears amount is too small to be worth collecting;
	(2)  how many cases with the Child Support Agency where child maintenance arrears had been classified as inactive have been reactivated due to receipt of fresh information in the last 12 months;
	(3)  in how many cases with the Child Support Agency with a current liability in arrears and not being currently actively pursued the arrears have been classified as inactive.

Steve Webb: The Department for Work and Pensions (the Department) began the reclassification of arrears trial in June 2012, and this limited trial will continue until the end of October 2013.
	The purpose of the trial is to use a random sample of cases to understand the scope for classifying arrears as inactive in respect of our active caseload and, where arrears have been made inactive, the potential volume of cases where we will subsequently reactivate those arrears.
	For the purposes of the trial, cases can be classified as inactive where collection is not currently possible for the following reasons:
	(a) the Department has no legal jurisdiction,
	(b) the Department is unable to trace the non-resident parent,
	(c) where the circumstances of the case prevent the use of the Department's enforcement powers or all the appropriate powers have been used to no avail, or
	(d) the arrears are uneconomic to pursue.
	Arrears are considered to be uneconomic to pursue if the total sum owed is less than the set “de minimis” rate and the arrears total is likely to remain below that rate into the long term. We set the “de minimis” rate as broadly representative of the cost to the Department of taking initial, low level enforcement action in respect of those arrears.
	To date, arrears have been classified as inactive in 20 cases where there is a current child maintenance liability and with arrears not being actively pursued.
	Once the trial is completed, we will be able to draw conclusions, based on sound evidence, and make a full assessment of the approach. This will include details of reactivation rates which will be available in full at the end of the trial.

Child Maintenance

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cases with the Child Support Agency and with a current liability are in arrears of child maintenance; and in what proportion of these cases payments have been made towards the arrears in the last 12 months.

Steve Webb: In the quarter to December 2012, of the 756,900 cases with a current liability (positive weekly assessment amount) 653,500 also had child maintenance arrears. Of these cases, around 25% had made payments towards arrears in the last 12 months. This does not include off system cases. This percentage has been calculated where there has been a payment towards an arrears schedule between 1 January and 31 December 2012.
	Investigations show that a proportion of arrears collections have been incorrectly linked to a regular collection schedule rather than an arrears schedule, therefore proportions above may be understated.

Child Maintenance

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in how many cases with the Child Support Agency and with a current liability in arrears and with no current liability are active collection and enforcement arrangements in place to recoup the child maintenance arrears still outstanding.

Steve Webb: In the quarter to December 2012, 653,500 cases with a current liability (positive weekly assessment amount) also had arrears. Of these cases 149,800 had an active arrears collection arrangement.
	In the quarter to December 2012, 146,100 cases without a current liability (positive weekly assessment amount) also had arrears. Of these cases 50,000 had an active arrears collection arrangement in place.
	These figures have been calculated by considering the Child Support Agency live and assessed caseload on CS2 and CSCS system cases (the 2003 and 1993 schemes). Figures are rounded to the nearest 100 and includes that small proportion of our cases where there is no longer a qualifying child, which have a payment schedule in place.
	Due to the number of small systems in place to report enforcement information, it is not possible to determine how many of the above cases are undergoing enforcement actions, within cost limits.
	Full details of all enforcement actions are shown on Page 34 of Child Support Agency's Quarterly Summary of Statistics published at:
	http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/child_support/2012/csa_qtr_summ_stats_dec12.pdf

Child Maintenance

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department expects to receive any fee income in 2013-14 from charging parents who use the new statutory child maintenance system.

Steve Webb: In December, following extensive testing, we introduced the 2012 scheme as a pathfinder for a small number of clients. We are carefully observing the results and progress so far has been good. During the course of 2013, the scheme will gradually be opened to greater volumes and eventually will be opened to all new applicants. Only when the scheme has been shown to be working well after it has been opened to all new applicants will application and collection fees to support and promote collaboration be introduced. Consequently, it is not expected that the Department will receive any fee income in 2013-14.

Child Maintenance

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether a term of imprisonment by a parent with shared parental responsibilities is disregarded by the Child Support Agency when calculating (a) maintenance payments and (b) shared responsibility requirements.

Steve Webb: Once the Child Support Agency has been made aware of a term of imprisonment, the case will be reassessed. The effect of a prison term is that the weekly child maintenance calculation payable by the non-resident parent will be reduced to nil. As a result of the nil calculation, any reductions that had previously been made for shared responsibilities will no longer apply.

Housing Benefit

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in receipt of local housing allowance were in receipt of the (a) shared accommodation rate, (b) one bedroom rate, (c) two bedroom rate, (d) three bedroom rate and (e) four bedroom rate in (i) December 2011 and (ii) January 2013.

Steve Webb: The table gives the information requested, where possible, for December 2011 and November 2012, which is the latest month for which data are available.
	
		
			 Housing benefit claims assessed under the local housing allowance 
			 LHA entitlement December 2011 November 2012 
			 Shared accommodation rate n/a 210,840 
			 One bedroom n/a 387,830 
			 Two bedrooms 457,940 496,330 
			 Three bedrooms 166,370 185,900 
			 Four bedrooms 51,090 59,980 
			 Notes: 1. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Recipients are as at second Thursday of the month. 4. The information has been drawn from the single housing benefit extract. No adjustments have been made to the raw data supplied by local authorities. There are known to be data recording issues affecting the numbers entitled to the shared accommodation rate and one-bedroom LHA rate for earlier periods. For this reason, numbers have not been provided for these categories of entitlement for December 2011. 5. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data are available monthly from November 2008 and November 2012 is the most recent available. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE)

Housing Benefit

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average loss in benefit entitlement was for those households affected by the raising of the age threshold for the shared accommodation rate of local housing allowance to 35 years old.

Steve Webb: The Department for Work and Pensions published an impact assessment in August 2011 which estimated the average loss in benefit entitlement for those claimants affected by the raising of the age threshold for the shared accommodation rate of local housing allowance to 35 years old. This is contained in Annex 2, Table 1 at the following web address:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/eia-hb-shared-accommodation-age-threshold.pdf

Housing Benefit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2013, Official Report, column 883W, on housing benefit, what methodology he has used to calculate the discretionary housing payment funding available for each local authority.

Steve Webb: Following discussion with the Local Authority Associations about the distribution of discretionary housing payments, it was agreed to target resources according to need. To achieve this aim, the methodology applies a different approach to the four component parts of the total discretionary housing payment allocation for 2013/14.
	Local authorities were advised of the basic formula used in the attached circular:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/s1-2013.pdf

Housing Benefit

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many households with individuals aged between 25 and 35 received an exemption from the shared accommodation rate due to being clients of agencies in multi-agency public protection arrangements in 2012;
	(2)  how many households with individuals aged between 25 and 35 received an exemption from the shared accommodation rate owing to the individual having spent at least three months in a homelessness hostel at which resettlement support was issued to this individual in 2012.

Steve Webb: This information is not available.

Housing Benefit

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of households affected by the raising of the age threshold for the shared accommodation rate to 35.

Steve Webb: The Department for Work and Pensions published an impact assessment in August 2011 which estimated the number of claimants affected by the raising of the age threshold for the shared accommodation rate to 35. This is contained in Annex 2, Table 1 at the following web address:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/eia-hb-shared-accommodation-age-threshold.pdf

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance he has issued to local authorities in relation to discretionary housing payments allocated to those affected by the under-occupancy penalty.

Steve Webb: The Department has consulted with local authorities on the discretionary housing payments guidance which will be published before 1 April. The revised guidance includes advice on how the additional £30 million allocated to the discretionary housing payment scheme can be used to support those affected by the removal of the spare room subsidy.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many (a) disabled, (b) single parent and (c) foster carer households will be affected by the under-occupancy penalty or bedroom tax in Camberwell and Peckham constituency;
	(2)  how many (a) disabled, (b) single parent and (c) foster carer households will be affected by the under-occupancy penalty or bedroom tax in Bermondsey and Old Southwark constituency.

Steve Webb: There is no such policy as the bedroom tax.
	Impacts of the removal of the spare room subsidy are not available at a local authority level.
	Estimated numbers of affected claimants in Great Britain (a) where either the claimant or their partner will be disabled and (b) who will be single parents are given in the equality impact assessment at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/eia-social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011.pdf
	The Department estimates that fewer than 5,000 affected claimants in Great Britain will be foster carers.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many council tenant households will be affected by the under-occupancy penalty or bedroom tax in Bermondsey and Old Southwark constituency.

Steve Webb: There is no such policy as the bedroom tax.
	Impacts of the removal of the spare room subsidy are not available at a local authority level.
	Numbers of affected claimants in Great Britain who are local authority tenants are given in the impact assessment at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many housing association tenant households will be affected by the under-occupancy penalty or bedroom tax in Bermondsey and Old Southwark constituency.

Steve Webb: There is no such policy as the bedroom tax.
	Impacts of the removal of the spare room subsidy are not available at a local authority level.
	Numbers of affected claimants in Great Britain who are housing association tenants are given in the impact assessment at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether households with a severely disabled child will be exempt from the under-occupancy penalty.

Steve Webb: Households with a severely disabled child who is unable to share a bedroom because of their disability will retain housing benefit for the additional room.
	This follows a Court of Appeal judgment about the treatment of disabled children under the size criteria rules in private rented accommodation last year.
	This will apply to social sector tenants from April when the spare room subsidy is removed.
	We have issued further guidance to local authorities today to inform them that a family will keep their spare room subsidy, where their child's disability means they cannot share a bedroom, as a result of the Court of Appeal judgement.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether severely disabled people will be exempt from the under-occupancy penalty.

Steve Webb: Severely disabled people are not exempt from the removal of the spare room subsidy. However, where a severely disabled person receives overnight care from a non-resident carer or team of carers, an additional bedroom will be allowed when determining the number of bedrooms they need. We have also allocated funds to local authorities to support disabled people who have significant adaptations to property.
	The measure will however be monitored and evaluated over a two-year period from April this year. Initial findings will be available in 2014 and the final report in late 2015.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of new jobseeker's allowance claims have been made online in each month since January 2012.

Mark Hoban: The information relating to the proportion of new claims to jobseeker's allowance submitted online that is available via the Department for Work and Pensions internet site is provided in Table 1 as follows:
	As part of Department for Work and Pensions commitment to new standards of transparency we publish Business Plan indicator data, including jobseeker allowance claims submitted online, via our “Publication: Business Plan Transparency Measures” internet pages.
	
		
			 Table 1: The proportion of new jobseeker's allowance claims that have been made online January 2012 to January 2013 
			  Percentage 
			 January 2012 19.7 
			 February 2012 17.9 
			 March 2012 19.6 
			 April 2012 23.7 
			 May 2012 23.4 
			 June 2012 29.5 
			 July 2012 30.9 
			 August 2012 32.1 
			 September 2012 39.0 
			 October 2012 39.3 
			 November 2012 41.9 
			 December 2012 45.5 
			 January 2013 51.4 
			 Source: MISP

Personal Independence Payment

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received on reducing the qualifying distance used to assess a claimant's eligibility for the mobility component of personal independence payment; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: We have not tightened the criteria in the ‘Moving around’ activity between the second and final drafts of the personal independence payment (PIP) assessment criteria. We had always intended that being unable to walk more than 50 metres should lead to entitlement to some rate of the Mobility component. However under the second draft of the assessment being unable to walk 50 metres did not automatically entitle claimants to the enhanced rate. Within the group who could walk up to 50 metres we wanted those who face the greatest barriers to mobility to receive the enhanced rate and the remainder the standard rate. In the second draft of the assessment criteria we differentiated by the type of aid and appliance an individual needed. In the final version of the criteria we differentiate by distance, which we feel is clearer.
	In the final draft individuals who cannot walk 20 metres can be certain they will receive the enhanced rate, regardless of whether they need an aid or appliance. Individuals who can walk distances longer than 20 metres could still receive the enhanced rate, depending on whether they can do so safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time period.
	The Government have now included in regulations that consideration must be given to whether claimants can carry out activities safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time period.
	Since publishing the final version of the assessment criteria the Department for Work and Pensions has received a number of representations from hon. Members, members of the public and organisations representing disabled people on this issue.

Personal Independence Payment

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received on the difficulties of assessing people with fluctuating conditions for personal independence payment; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The Department for Work and Pensions received a number of representations from hon. Members, members of the public and organisations representing disabled people regarding assessing people with fluctuating conditions, both during the formal consultation on the second draft of the personal independence payment (PIP) assessment criteria, and since its conclusion.
	We know that assessing fluctuating conditions is very difficult. We believe our approach strikes the right balance, looking at the circumstances of the individual and the impact of their health condition or impairment over a 12 month period. It takes into account where claimants' ability to carry out activities is affected on the majority of days in the year, at any point on those days. We will be closely monitoring how the assessment works for people with fluctuating conditions following the implementation of PIP.

Social Security Benefits

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the proportion of people able to use the internet who receive (a) jobseeker's allowance, (b) employment support allowance, (c) income support, (d) child tax credits, (e) working tax credit and (f) housing benefit.

Mark Hoban: Data are not available on the proportion of internet users in receipt of particular benefits.
	However, the recent DWP research report “Work and the welfare system: a survey of benefits and tax credits recipients” (Tu, T. and Ginnis, S., 2012)(1) assesses what proportion of benefit recipients use the internet and finds the following levels of internet usage by benefit type:
	(1 )http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2011-2012/rrep800.pdf
	
		
			 Benefit Percentage of claimants who use the internet 
			 Jobseeker's allowance 88 
			 Employment support allowance 64 
			 Income support claimants 65 
			 Child tax credit claimants 89 
			 Working tax credit claimants 86 
			 Housing benefit claimants 71 
		
	
	In total, 78% of claimants used the internet, with 48% using it every day. Of those who used the internet, 90% accessed the internet from their own home. (Total claimants includes those claiming carer's allowance, incapacity benefit and council tax benefit as well as above benefits).
	N.B. respondents in this survey were head of benefit units but were responding on behalf of entire benefit unit.

Social Security Benefits: Greater London

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 27 February 2013, Official Report, column 560W, on Social Security Benefits: Greater London, how many children are domiciled in those households affected by the benefit cap in the London borough of (a) Bromley, (b) Croydon, (c) Enfield and (d) Haringey.

Mark Hoban: The following table shows the number of children domiciled in those households affected by the benefit cap in (i) Bromley, (ii) Croydon, (iii) Enfield and (iv) Haringey.
	
		
			 Local authority Number of children 
			 Bromley 1,100 
			 Croydon 2,900 
			 Enfield 6,000 
			 Haringey 3,500 
			 Total 13,500 
		
	
	The figures presented above are consistent with the impact assessment published on 16 July 2012. The figures in the table assume that the situation of these households will go unchanged, and they will not take any steps to either work enough hours to qualify for working tax credit, renegotiate their rent in situ, or find alternative accommodation. The Department is identifying and writing to all the households who are likely to be affected by the cap and we are offering advice and support through Jobcentre Plus, including, where appropriate, early access to the Work programme before the cap is introduced in April 2013.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2012, Official Report, column 387W, on universal credit, which parts of the universal credit programme are currently using agile, rather than waterfall, software techniques; and in what circumstances agile techniques are regarded as appropriate for developing software for the programme.

Mark Hoban: In a programme as complex as universal credit, which includes new IT developments and changes to existing IT assets, both agile and waterfall methods may be appropriate at different times. As examples, initial development used agile techniques while, in its final stages of testing for the pathfinder from April 2013, the programme is using the waterfall approach—a standard DWP testing methodology.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 17 September 2012, Official Report, column 536W, on universal credit, which parts of the universal credit IT system are being delivered by (a) Accenture, (b) BT, (c) Capgemini, (d) Hewlett Packard and (e) IBM.

Mark Hoban: Accenture is delivering the claimant and agent facing applications.
	IBM is delivering the “back end” processing applications.
	Hewlett Packard (HP) is delivering the hardware for the UC IT system and the work services application as well as hosting the UC applications in production.
	BT is delivering telephony services to support both DWP agents and claimants.
	Cap Gemini is providing consultancy support.

Winter Fuel Payments: Kilmarnock

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of pensioners who will claim winter fuel allowance in Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency in (a) 2014, (b) 2015 and (c) 2016.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	Caseload forecasts for Great Britain by individual benefit, including winter fuel payment, can be found on the internet at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/autumn_2012_211212.xls
	Table 1c provides caseload by year to 2017/18.
	Information on the number of winter fuel payments paid is provided in the document “Winter Fuel Payment recipients 2011-12 by Parliamentary Constituencies and Gender (All)”. We expect a similar number of payments to be made in future years. This information is available on the internet at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=wfp
	Over 95% of winter fuel payments are made automatically, without the need to claim, based on information held in DWP records. A small number of people whose circumstances we do not know need to make a claim. It is not possible to give the exact number of eligible people, but we have no reason to estimate that eligibility is materially different from the number of payments made.

Work Capability Assessment

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he intends to reply to the request from the hon. Member for Oldham West of 31 January 2013 for him to receive a delegation to examine the need for urgent reform of the descriptions and procedures used by Atos Healthcare in their work capability assessments.

Mark Hoban: I replied to the right hon. Member on 5 March 2013.

Work Programme

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support is in place for participants who complete the full two years of the Work programme without finding a job at the end of the process.

Mark Hoban: Last year we ran a small-scale trial to understand how best to support those jobseeker's allowance claimants who remain on benefit after completing the full two years of the Work programme. An initial evaluation and analysis of the off-benefit impact from the trial was published on 6 December 2012.
	The evidence from the trial will help inform the Department's decisions on the development of a national programme of support for those claimants, the first cohort of which arrive in June 2013. We will make an announcement in due course.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Community Development

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how his Department is working with local authorities and public services to develop community involvement strategies, including a strategy to increase levels of neighbourhood volunteering.

Don Foster: This Government trust local authorities to develop their own community involvement strategies.
	The new rights in the Localism Act 2011 open up new possibilities for local authorities and communities to work together to improve their local area. How this is done will depend on each area, and the issues the community wants to address.
	Government recognise some local authorities and communities may want help to use the new rights and we are providing over £40 million of support. Further details can be found using the website:
	www.mycommunityrights.org.uk
	Government are also enabling people to get involved with meaningful social action and volunteering. A great example is the National Citizen Service which gives 16 and 17-year-olds from all backgrounds the opportunity to work together, to take on new challenges and to make a difference in their communities.

Council Tax Benefits

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of households in each local authority in England who will be affected by reductions in council tax benefit.

Brandon Lewis: Information regarding the design of local schemes and the number of households affected is not held centrally.
	Councils already set council tax, collect it and administer the benefit and it makes sense for them to decide the levels of support people should receive with their council tax bills. Councils are best placed to understand local priorities and to take these local factors into account when deciding on levels of support.
	More broadly our reforms will give councils stronger incentives to support local firms, cut fraud, promote local enterprise and get people back into work. They will also contribute to the Government's deficit reduction programme. Welfare reform is vital to tackle the budget deficit we have inherited from the last Administration, under which council tax benefit expenditure doubled.

Council Tax Benefits

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the average increase in annual council tax payments for households (a) making some payment currently and (b) not currently paying council tax as a result of reductions in council tax benefit.

Brandon Lewis: Information regarding the design of local schemes and the number of households affected is not held centrally.

Homelessness

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the reasons are for the time taken to publish the statutory homelessness statistics in England for October to December 2012.

Mark Prisk: The publication date for the Statutory Homelessness Statistics release for October to December 2012 has been amended from 7 March by departmental statisticians to allow for further quality assurance work. We will publish the revised release date shortly.

Homelessness: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many families in (a) Barrow and Furness constituency and (b) Cumbria were registered as homeless in each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many families in (a) Barrow and Furness constituency and (b) Cumbria were housed in bed and breakfast accommodation as a result of homelessness in each of the last three years; and what the average duration of a family's stay in such accommodation was in each such year.

Mark Prisk: Information on the numbers of homelessness acceptances is presented in the following table. The table also includes the numbers of families in bed and breakfast accommodation.
	Although the Department collects information on the time periods spent by households in temporary accommodation as a whole, this is not collected separately for bed and breakfast accommodation. The Department does, however, collect information on the numbers of families that have been in bed and breakfast accommodation for six weeks or more. This is currently published nationally.
	We are investing £470 million in homelessness prevention over four years (2011-12-2014-15) to help local authorities and voluntary sector organisations prevent and tackle homelessness, rough sleeping and repossessions.
	We have also increased the discretionary housing payments pot to around £400 million over the Spending Review period to help families and those in vulnerable situations with the transition of welfare reform changes.
	It is unacceptable and illegal to place families with children in bed and breakfast accommodation except in an emergency and even then for no more than six weeks.
	We called on local housing authorities not to use bed and breakfast for families as one of ten challenges we set them in the recent Ministerial Working Group Report on Homelessness.
	
		
			 Homelessness acceptances 
			  2009 2010 2011 January to September 2012(1) 
			 Allerdale 93 109 74 36 
			 Barrow-in-Furness 52 23 26 22 
			 Carlisle 122 108 181 73 
			 Copeland 51 104 89 86 
			 Eden 17 11 9 2 
			 South Lakeland 72 41 52 27 
			 Barrow and Furness constituency(2) 124 64 78 49 
			 Cumbria(3) 407 396 431 246 
		
	
	
		
			 Families in bed and breakfast accommodation 
			  As at 30 September each year 
			  2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Allerdale 0 0 0 0 
			 Barrow-in-Furness 0 1 2 0 
			 Carlisle 0 3 6 0 
			 Copeland 0 0 1 0 
			 Eden 0 0 0 0 
			 South Lakeland 0 1 0 0 
			 Barrow and Furness constituency(2) 0 2 2 0 
			 Cumbria(3) 0 5 9 0 
			 (1) Figures for 1 October to 31 December 2012 are not yet available. (2) Comprises the districts of Barrow-in-Furness and South Lakeland. (3) Comprises all six districts listed above. Source: PIE returns from local authorities

Housing Associations: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the introduction of universal credit on the finances of housing associations operating in Cumbria.

Mark Prisk: The Department for Communities and Local Government is working alongside the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure that universal credit is designed in a way that protects social landlords' financial position. To help achieve this, we are working closely with a group of social landlords from six areas across the country on the direct payment demonstration projects, to test the impact of paying housing benefit direct to tenants.
	More information, including the payment rates for the first four payments of the projects (three, in the case of Edinburgh) and further background can be found in the press package released by the Department for Work and Pensions in December 2012:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/direct-payment-demo-figures.pdf
	A copy of this document is available in the Library of the House.
	A key aim of the demonstration projects is to explore the best safeguards to protect tenants and social landlords from the risk of increases in rent arrears. The projects are also helping local authorities and housing associations understand how they need to prepare for the introduction of universal credit. We intend to use the evidence gathered from the projects to inform the design of universal credit, including these safeguards to protect the financial position of social landlords and reduce the risks of tenants falling into debt.
	Universal credit is about making work pay, so that everyone becomes better off when they move into work, or when they start working longer hours. By removing the distinction between being in work and out of work, by ensuring that there is a clear financial return for each extra hour worked, and by removing the existing hours rules, universal credit is expected to increase the income of the poorest workers, increase employment, reduce poverty and to start to break of the cycle of workless households in succeeding generations.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effects of the housing benefit under-occupancy charge on (a) the future provision of housing and (b) homelessness in local authorities in England and Wales.

Mark Prisk: There are 249,000 overcrowded households in the social sector, while nearly 1.5 million under-occupy. The removal of the spare room subsidy should encourage more effective use of social housing by encouraging tenants to move to properties suitable for the size of their household, or taking in a lodger to occupy a spare bedroom. The Localism Act, and the introduction of ‘Homeswap Direct’, has made it easier for social tenants to move.
	The measure should also encourage social landlords to be more strategic in the allocation of property. It should also influence their building programmes, helping to ensure more appropriately sized accommodation for demand. The Government are providing significant finance for new affordable homes to support the future provision of housing.
	The Government's impact assessment for the removal of the spare room subsidy was published by DWP:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf
	This highlights that it is not possible to make robust assessments of the impacts for landlords and tenants as there is little research on the possible behavioural impacts of changing housing benefit in the social rented sector. However, DWP is commissioning external researchers to monitor and evaluate the impacts of the measure, to report in 2015.

Local Development Frameworks

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average cost to local authorities is of preparing a local development framework; and how many such applications have not been accepted in the last year.

Nicholas Boles: Data on costs are not centrally held. Councils' statutory planning functions are financed by central Government grant, locally retained revenues and planning fees. My Department follows the New Burdens doctrine when introducing duties on local authorities. We have also offered councils a range of practical assistance to help them prepare up to date Local Plans.
	In relation to the examination of councils' Local Plans, I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 25 February 2013, Official Report, House of Lords, column 256WA.

Non-domestic Rates

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidelines his Department gives the Valuation Office Agency on the time taken to make a decision on business rates revaluation.

Brandon Lewis: The decision to postpone the 2015 business rates revaluation has been made by the Government. Clause 25 of the Growth and Infrastructure Bill will postpone the 2015 revaluation to 2017.
	More broadly, in relation to day-to-day valuation work, the Valuation Office Agency act independently of Ministers in setting rateable values and dealing with appeals and the Department of Communities and Local Government does not issue guidelines regarding their work. However, the Valuation Office Agency's performance indicators are agreed with the Department of Communities and Local Government and are published in their annual report.

Social Rented Housing: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of social landlord houses in (a) Barrow and Furness constituency and (b) Cumbria that are in (i) under-occupation and (ii) over-occupation.

Mark Prisk: Information at the local authority district level about under-occupation and overcrowding across the whole social rented sector is not currently collected centrally.
	DWP will collect data on overcrowding and under-occupation for housing benefit claimants in the social rented sector as part of the implementation of the Social Sector Size Criteria.
	A DWP impact assessment on the Social Sector Size Criteria is available at the following link:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf
	Data from the 2011 census are available giving overcrowding by local authority but not broken down by tenure. See Table QS412EW at the following link:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/index.html